The Executive Chairman of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Council, Rt. Hon. Enyiada Cookey-Gam has vowed to redefine governance by revamping the health sector that was relegated to the background due to poor leadership by previous administrations.
Addressing staff of the primary health care of the council recently in Opobo Town, Cookey-Gam lamented what he termed poor and ugly narrative of governance in the area, stressing the poor health facilities in the LGA after the creation in 1996 which cannot meet the health needs of the people.
He explained that with the support of all in the sector, he will take up the challenge of resuscitating the health sector which he described as catalyst for a healthy living, going by the yearnings of the people noting that it was high time workers in their integrity stopped complaining about governance from the sidelines and that very little exists in the health sector of the LGA, by way of critical public health infrastructure as many key government institutions, including the sector continues to operate from the same makeshift structures they have been using over 30 years ago.
“One can only view the health sector at this time and resuscitate it for greater efficiency and productivity will be on course, especially providing modern health care facilities drugs and other demanding necessity of staffers of the sector. My administration will do all things possible to revamp the health sector to make more formidable that will provide the needed requirement for the treatment of various ailments of members of the public in the LGA”, he declared.
Cookey-Gam maintained that gone are the days when staff were neglected as problems of poor wages and paucity of funds from meeting these challenges are integrated into Nigeria’s health policy plans, adding that “In contemporary times, poverty, hunger and Covid-19 pandemic are threatening and when global efforts are tailored towards the attainment of the sustainable development goals with the mantra of leave no one behind responsible governments are fashioning policy and legal framework to ensure the inclusion of its vulnerable population healthcare.”
“My administration will do all within its power based on available resources to cater for the welfare needs of staff of the sector to allow for a productive health sector in the LGA,” he said.
In his response Head of the Primary Healthcare in Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Council, Dr Adolphus Jaja, who lauded the chairman for coming out successful at the polls enumerated some of their challenges including lack of accommodation for staff, non-payment of backlogs of their allowances, poor and ailing medical facilities in the LGA and non-promotion of the staff who are due for such, among others.
Jaja appealed to the chairman to critically look into their demands by proffering lasting solutions to it and assured of their readiness to work in tandem with his administration to achieve success.

By: Bethel Toby