Prominent Nigerian leader Pate is recognized by North-East officials for impactful health sector improvements.
By Umar Sa’id, Baúchi
The Coordinating Health Minister, Professor Ali Pate has been commended for transforming Health sector in the country since his appointment.
Chairman, Democracy and Good Governance Forum North East, Comrade Sulaiman Ahmad made the Commendation over the weekend in a statement issued to Journalists in Baúchi, saying the Health Minister has improved the health sector greatly across the country.
He said the Democracy and Good Governance Forum in the North East Zone is a nongovernmental organization, non political and non religious outfit that usually itemize and identify the contributions of individuals or groups most especially citizens of the north east sub region devoid of any political or religious differences.
He added that the organization has been in the forefront advocating for peaceful coexistence amongst the diverse ethno-religious groups in the sub-region, as well as repeated calls for government to end the age long insurgency activities in the North-East.
He described Prof Mohammed Ali Pate as a performing Minister whose wealth of experience and exposure has closed the health gap Nigeria was experiencing in the past, calling on President Bola Ahmad Tinubu to continue to support him to transform the Health sector.
“From his days at the Bill and Millinda Gate foundation, the world health organization, as Minister of state for health during former president Goodluck Jonathan and now current Coordinating Minister of Health and social welfare under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Prof Pate deserves commendation for his commitment towards transforming the health sector generally.”
The group itemized the initiatives of the coordinating Minister of Health and social welfare Prof Mohammed Ali Pate under the President Bola Tinubu led administration to include reduction in maternal mortality and morbidity and free access to health facilities by pregnant women and children under five years of age across the country which has now made hospital services affordable to the common man.
The chairman also listed cost of dialysis services at various teaching hospitals that was reduced from N50,000 to N12,000 making such services affordable to the common man as against the past high rate.
“Prof Mohammed Ali Pate has broken the jinx in the areas of hospital staff and medical officers in various federal hospitals to address the age long man power gabs in Nigeria’s many health facilities, thereby reducing to the Barest minimum medical tourism abroad, through the construction of cancer care centres in Katsina, Enugu and Edo states with more underway”, he said.
He added that currently over N86.8 billion under the basic healthcare provision fund has since been channelled for that purposes while over 61,700 medical health workers have been trained to enable them deliver on their mandate.
“As we speak we have over four million people that are under the national health insurance scheme across Nigeria and more are underway to enjoy effective health care services, the first in the history of Nigeria”, the statement revealed.
The group cited as example, the establishment of new Teaching Hospital in Azare, the headquarters of Katagum local government area, new Federal Medical Center (FMC) in Misau of Misau local government area, the new cancer center at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa university Teaching Hospital, Bauchi all in Bauchi state as some of the coordinating Minister’s efforts to transform the health sector in Nigeria.”
Sulaiman Ahmad Bauchi added that in the two years of his stewardship as Minister, over 61 health facilities have either been constructed, rehabilitated or stocked with medical consumables for the good of the people and currently Prof Mohammed Ali Pate has attracted the sum of 3.4 billion US Dollars as intervention in the health sector alone.
The Democracy and Good Governance Forum, North East therefore called on President Bola Ahmad Tinubu to continue to support the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Mohammed Ali Pate as his administration’s policies and programmes in the health sector.
