Senate committee chairman on Anti-corruption and Financial Crimes Commission, Senator Emmanuel Udende, has said his sponsorship of the bill to establish the Federal Medical Centre, Adikpo, in Kwande local government area of Benue State, is to bring medical care closer to the people, especially in times of emergency.
Senator Udende stated this at the one-day public hearing on the amendment to the Federal Medical Centre‘s Act of 2022, which involved about 40 bills.
Senator Udende also said the distance between Adikpo , a Nigerian border town and Makurdi, the state capital with a Federal Medical Centre, covers over 300 kilometres and places patients who need medical care on a dangerous line.
He explained that the people of Kwande who share boundaries with Republic of Cameroon most often are required to seek medical attention outside their country and in most cases are frustrated or cannot afford the cost.
According to Udende, who represents Benue North East, the strategic location of the health facility will provide potential economic benefits through trade and cultural exchange, given its proximity to the Republic of Cameroon.
Speaking during the public hearing, Senator Udende maintained that the Federal Medical Centre will place Adikpo on the path of steady investment in infrastructure , healthcare and education ,expressing concerns that the absence of such institutions on the side of the Nigerian border town has grossly caused underdevelopment, urging the Senate Committee on Health and Tertiary Institutions to approve the proposals in order to save the lives of the people and bring development to the people.
Earlier in his address , Senator Lola Ashiru, who represented Senate President Godswill Akpabio, assured that the bills will all be passed into law as a duty placed on the shoulders of lawmakers to ensure health availability and accessibility .
