• Earmarks $4m to equip hospitals in Rivers
From Tony John, Port Harcourt
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has urged the Army High Command to desist from posting battalions of soldiers to politicians, saying it is counter-productive and a threat to national security.
The governor said the Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Buratai, should go beyond complaining that politicians were hobnobbing with soldiers and take action to check the disturbing trend.
Speaking during the flag-off of construction of the Old Aba Road by Mbano Junction in Oyigbo Local Government Area yesterday, Wike said all over the world, only the Commander-in-Chief has soldiers guarding him.
He regretted that in Nigeria, the authorities have made it a practise to allocate soldiers to politicians in the good books of the Federal Government, with such soldiers used for undemocratic actions against the people.
“Who are those approving battalions of soldiers to politicians? If they don’t want soldiers to follow politicians, they should stop giving soldiers to politicians.
“It is only in Nigeria that soldiers follow politicians. They should stop soldiers from being security details to politicians,” said Wike
On the construction of Old Aba Road by Mbano Junction in Oyigbo council, the governor assured the people of the area that the road would be completed on schedule.
He said the Old Market Road to Afam would be awarded and constructed by his administration.
He also said since the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led federal government has failed to complete the East-West Road, his administration will develop alternative routes to lubricate the Rivers economy.
The governor declared that his performance has silenced the APC, and urged the people of the state to turn out en masse for the voter registration so that they could “vote out failed politicians.”
In his remarks, Commissioner for Works, Mr. Iheanyichuwu Bathuel, said Old Aba Road by Mbano Junction is a critical economic road that connects neighbouring states.
Also speaking, Caretaker Committee Chairman of Oyigbo council, Gbali Chisom lauded governor Wike for starting construction of the road.
Meanwhile, the state government has released about $4 million for the procurement of special health care equipment for Braithwaite Specialist Memorial Hospital (BSMH) in Port Harcourt, as part of efforts to improve health care service delivery.
Commissioner for Information and Communication, Dr. Austin Tam-George, disclosed this, yesterday, while highlighting achievements recorded by the current administration since its inception on May 29, 2015.
Tam-George said the equipment would be used for scanning of all kinds of medical conditions.
“We have also seen that $4 million has been released so far to buy special equipment, specialists’ gadgets for the Braithwaite Specialists Memorial Hospital.
“This is also the first time we are getting this kind of extensive financial commitment in that sector, altogether, it is about $6 million. But, $4 million is already released.”
Tam-George also disclosed that the government has given N500 million grant to private healthcare practitioners, to improve healthcare delivery in the state, and noted that Wike placed priority on the health sector.
He said: “In addition to the purchase of the equipment for BSMH, in the course of this second year, the governor has given N500 million as a special grant for private healthcare practitioners to improve healthcare delivery in the state. This is unprecedented. This has never been done in the history of the state, since 1967.”