Osun Govt Narrates How Hoodlums Attacked, Looted Medical Centre, Carted Away Computers, Others
As part of the assessment of government properties and the State’s collective possession that were looted and vandalised, the State Government of Osun has reported the invasion, looting and carting away of drugs, mosquito nets and ICT equipment by rampaging hoodlums from its medical complex and drug distribution centre.
This was disclosed today by the Executive Secretary of the Osun Health Insurance Agency, Dr Adeniyi Oginni, during a press conference on the incidence of the vandalisation of the Agency’s headquarters and drug distribution centre.
Oginni describing the incidence, said the hoodlums, who stormed the facility with assorted weapons, besieged the Agency’s head office and OHIS Drug Distribution Centre (OHIS DDC) that share the same compound with the state central medical store which housed the mosquito nets currently being distributed across the State by the State Malaria Programme.
He added that some of the items that were carted away on Saturday, 24th Ocober 2020 included electronics, ICT equipment, office furniture and medicines.
Describing the importance of the facility to the State of Osun, Oginni said: “Recall that the Governor of the State, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola, in demonstration of his commitment to his promise to provide qualitative health care for the good people of the State, last year released the sum of One Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N 150,000,000) take-off grant to establish the agency and another Four Hundred and Seventy Seven Million Naira (N 477,000,000) as equity grant to fund the vulnerable programme of Osun Health Insurance Scheme (OHIS) which is meant to provide quality healthcare for the poorest of the poor at no cost to them whatsoever.
“Over One hundred and sixty-seven thousand (167,000) enrollees including civil servants, self employed and vulnerable indigent persons are already enjoying the scheme with another list of Twenty-Four thousand, seven hundred and twelve (24,712) vulnerable persons and people living with disability, whose vulnerability status has just been validated waiting for enrolment and empanelment to healthcare facilities where they would have started receiving healthcare free of charge from November, 2020.
“There are 86 healthcare facilities both public and private already providing primary and secondary care to our enrollees across the state.
‘In addition, in order to ease the problem of out-of-stock syndrome of medicines for OHIS enrollees, Governor, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola gave approval for the Agency to establish OHIS Drug Distribution Centre with a seed stock of Twenty-Five Million Naira (25,000,000) to supply medicines and consumables to all government hospitals accredited for service provision under the scheme.
“This way, our enrollees have been enjoying supply of drugs contained in our Essential Medicine List whenever they present to our hospitals. This incidentally is the first of its kind to be operated by any state Health Insurance Agency in the country, and has now been vandalized with more than half the drugs carted away by hoodlums”, Oginni explained.
Oginni appealed to its citizens to cooperate with the Government of the State of Osun in providing quality healthcare system under the Osun Health Insurance Scheme, by notifying the law enforcement agents promptly at the sight of electronic equipment, computers, printers, furniture, generators, refrigerators and drugs belonging to the State, adding that citizens have a role to play in putting a stop to the wanton destruction of the Commonwealth of the State.