5th March, 2014
The Rivers Commissioner for Health, Dr Samson Parker, on Wednesday said the state government was shopping for N82.3 trillion to solve the problems confronting its health sector.
Parker, who was briefing newsmen in Port Harcourt, said that the money would be spent on construction of more hospitals, training of staff and for the purchase of equipment.
He said that the government had spent about N6 billion on health sector since the administration came into office in 2007.
According to Parker, there will never be enough funds to run the health sector due to its importance and demand.
The commissioner said that the N6 billion spent on the sector was for building of hospitals and training of health workers.
He said that the state government built over 200 primary health centres and achieved 100 per cent routine immunisation coverage.
According to him, the health implication of the 100 per cent routine immunisation coverage has reduced infant and maternal mortality to the barest minimum in the state.
“Our children and women are not dying again like before,’’ he said.
Parker said that medical doctors in the state hospitals went on strike due to the alleged “infrastructure decay’’ in hospitals, adding that official cars had been bought for the doctors to motivate them.
He said that the dwindling revenue allocation from federation account was affecting the state.
Parker said that the fund that could have accrued to the state from the Social Service Contribution toward Rivers Free Medical Health Programme had been stopped.
He said that the contributions were stopped by some people who went to court to challenge the social service contribution after the state legislature had passed the bill into law.
According to him, the programme is to reduce insecurity, poverty and save lives in Rivers “because healthcare is expensive and not affordable to many families.’’