How Abuja residents organize, push for community hospital

MAWA Foundation has learned how Abuja residents challenged the Gwagwalada Area Council Authority over Mr. Abubakar Jibrin, the former chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council of Abuja, the Nigerian capital city for diverting money meant for a community hospital.

Mr. Jibrin was said to have snapped pictures from another location and inserted them in the file as having completed the hospital when in reality, it has since been abandoned.

The Primary health care located at Sabon Kaida Dobi Ward in Gwagwalada Area Council had stayed uncompleted for a long time denying the community residents access to healthcare delivery.

Worried over the long stay of the hospital not been completed, the community members comprising the traditional rulers and change agents wrote letters to the Area Council Authority drawing its attention to it and appealing it helps them complete and fix the hospital.

When the chairman granted audience to the community representative, he told them Mr. Jibrin, the Council former chairman has since signed off the uncompleted hospital as having been completed and properly filled same as one of his achievements.

To prove his claim to the community, Mr. Mustapha Danze, the Gwagwalada Council Chairman presented a file that has pictures showing that the abandoned community hospital has been completed and handed over for use. A development that shocked the community.

However, when the community presented compelling evidence before Mr. Danze, it turned out that Mr. Jibrin, the former chairman took pictures of a completed hospital from another location and inserted them in the council file as having completed the project.

The abandoned hospital
The abandoned hospital

Having found out that the community has been shortchanged by the former council chairman, Mr. Danze told the community members that there is no money to complete the hospital, but however, told them that the best he can do is to support them with his personal money to help fix the hospital.

Mr. Danze gave the community N150k, an amount they joined their own monies and got the hospital roofed.

One of the community officials, speaking to MAWA foundation, said having roofed the hospital, it has remained that way, no drugs, hospital equipment, and personnel while it has since turned a ghost building and serves no purpose.

A community champion who does not want his name mentioned for fear of been harassed by the politician told MAWA that the Sabon Kaida Dobi community has no hospital while all community residents rely on a small patent medical store for medical care.

Attempts by MAWA to speak to Mr. Danze the Area Council Chairman was unsuccessful as his telephone number could not be reached and he did not return text messages sent to him.

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