Articles by Seyi Sokoya

Health

Wale Oke, Ex-CMD demand urgent overhaul of Nigeria’s health system

The National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) and founder of Sword of the Spirit Ministries, Bishop Francis Wale Oke, has called for urgent reforms in Nigeria’s healthcare system to reduce preventable deaths among young people and end the trend of political leaders seeking medical treatment abroad. He made the appeal during the Foundation Day Annual Public Enlightenment Lecture of the Dorcas Oke Hope Alive Initiative (DOHAL) at Precious Cornerstone University (PCU), Ibadan. Oyo State capital. In the same vein, the former Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Professor Temitope Alonge, who was the keynote speaker of the event, emphasized the importance of primary healthcare as the foundation of an effective system. “If we get primary healthcare right, we will get healthcare right. An African child has immense potential for the future,” he said. The initiative, founded in memory of his late daughter, aims to promote health awareness and improve access to quality healthcare. Bishop Oke stressed the need for massive investment in the health sector to make care accessible, affordable, and sustainable. He described the frequent foreign medical trips of government officials as “undignified and unsafe,” urging the government to upgrade one tertiary hospital in each geopolitical zone to global standards. “We don’t want a situation where any president will be sick and has to go abroad for treatment,” he said. “There should be accessible and affordable healthcare for all, from the number one citizen to the rural dweller,” he added. DOHAL’s Executive Director, Pastor (Mrs.) Olufunmilayo Ajibulu, noted that since 2009, the annual lecture has provided a platform to address critical health and social issues affecting the African child.