Medical Director Overrules Federal Executive Council On Hospital Project

Chief Medical Director of the University of Ibadan College Hospital, Dr Jesse A. Olubanjo Otegbayo, has overruled a Federal Executive Council approval granted to Olivegreen Advisory Partners Limited for two central Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects, including the construction of a mortuary.

Documents sighted by our correspondent showed that in December 2024, the Federal Ministry of Health formally conveyed FEC’s approval to the chief medical director for the renovation and upgrade of the School of Nursing students’ hostel as well as the refurbishment and rehabilitation of the hospital’s mortuary and pathology laboratory.

The council approved the project at the FEC meeting of June 25, 2024. It was also approved by the Infrastructure Concession Regulation Council (ICRC).

Efforts to get reaction from Dr Otegbayo were unsuccessful as our correspondent was directed to the office of the public relations officer, Mr Toye Akinrinola, who said he could only speak after a formal letter.

A formal letter was addressed to the chief medical director through the PRO, but at the time of filing this report, the hospital management had yet to respond.

In a letter signed by the deputy director of the PPP/Diaspora Unit, Mrs Nkechi Egbuedike, the Ministry of Health, acting on the approval by the FEC, emphasised the importance of the projects to healthcare delivery and education at UCH.

“Accordingly, you are requested to work with the ministry to take the necessary steps to facilitate the implementation of these projects,” the letter said.

However, four years later, the chief medical director has not fulfilled his authority to call Olivegreen management to start the work, despite several attempts to meet with him.

When LEADERSHIP contacted the Infrastructure Concession Regulation Council (ICRC), the agency confirmed that it had completed a review of the University of Ibadan mortuary and had received the Federal Executive Council approval for it to be renovated on a PPP arrangement.

The head of media at ICRC, Mr Ifeanyi Nwoko, confirmed to LEADERSHIP that ICRC had approved the project for Olivegreen, adding that all regulatory processes had been completed.

“ICRC has completed its review of the University of Ibadan Mortuary PPP and the Federal Executive Council has approved it,” the commission said, “The project is now simply awaiting contract signing between the university and the concessionaire. Once they sign, implementation can begin,” Nwoko said.

The commission further disclosed that it had advised both UCH and Olivegreen to proceed with the concession as approved by the FEC.

However, despite clearance from the health ministry, ICRC, and the Federal Ministry of Justice, UCH has yet to sign the concession agreements.

That delay prompted Olivegreen Advisory Partners Ltd to write to the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare on November 11, 2025, requesting urgent intervention.

In the letter signed by A. Oloko, the company expressed frustration over the prolonged process.

“We have been on this process for over four years and need to make progress accordingly,” the firm wrote.

Findings indicated that the PPP process commenced in early 2022 when UCH received approval for the Outline Business Case for the projects. Full Business Case approval, along with compliance certificates from the ICRC, followed in 2023. The ministry subsequently presented the projects to the FEC, which granted its approval in June 2024.

Following a follow-up meeting at the ICRC in February 2025, UCH forwarded the concession agreements to the Federal Ministry of Justice for review and vetting. Approval was obtained by June 2025. Yet, more than a year after receiving initial FEC clearance, UCH has still not executed the agreements.

Correspondence reviewed shows that the ICRC revalidated the FBC certificates for both the student hostel upgrade and the mortuary/pathology rehabilitation projects in May 2024.

In a letter dated May 2, 2024, the commission’s director general, Michael Ohiani, confirmed the revalidation for another six months.

He noted that the action was based on earlier reviews of the project objectives and scope. He indicated that the ministry was expected to present the PPP projects to the FEC within the validity period.

A separate letter titled “Project Description: Refurbishment and Rehabilitation of Mortuary Facility, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State” also reaffirmed the revalidation of the compliance certificate as of May 24, 2024.

It carried the same notification that the six-month validity period was necessary because project conditions could change over time.

The multiple layers of approval create a clear impression that the regulatory due process has been completed and that Olivegreen has been duly cleared to proceed. Yet, without the signature of the UCH management, the concession remains stalled.

Olivegreen confirmed to our correspondent that, for over four years, it has received approval for the concession of the University of Ibadan Mortuary under a Public-Private Partnership; however, the CMD of the Hospital has refused to allow it to carry out the project.