Date Published: 07/17/10

When Governor Uduaghan Listens to Cry of an Orphan to Restore Back Damaged Organ

By: Prince Amour Udemude.

For Mr. Francis Ememifeozor, an indigene of Ogbeishago village, Ogwashi-Uku, Aniocha South Local Government Area, Delta State, who is an accident victim thinks all hopes was lost until a God sent governor of Delta state, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan came to his rescue and restored back smiles to his face.

Mr. Francis Ememifeozor

Precisely on Friday, May 27, 2005, children’s day when children all over the world were celebrating their day a reckless and heartless Lagos bus driver rammed into Mr. Francis Ememifeozor and ran away, an accident which left Mr. Ememifeozor urinating with the aid of pipe for the past six years as a result of internal injuries he sustained.

Narrating his ordeal, Mr. Ememifeozor recounted how he was on unconscious for good three days and only woke up at the General Hospital in Marina where a good Nigerian woman had rushed him to after the accident and doctors have to battle for three days to save his life but at the end, he was left with a broken leg and a punctured urethra. By this development, he was told that he could no longer urinate through his penis without an aid.

According to the helpless and orphan, a catheter (a pipe) was fixed on him to enable him to urinate pending when the urinary tract operation is carried out on him.

In his words “After series of tests had been conducted on me, the doctor said I had internal bleeding because my urinary pipe was cut and I would require a urinary tract operation before I could pass urine with my penis. I was referred to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) where facilities for the urinary tract operation are available but after the operation, doctors told me that I still needed to undergo some other major operations before the problem would be properly corrected so that I can use my penis to pass urine like before and I was told that the operation would cost about N1.5m excluding other miscellaneous expenses. After the initial admission in the General Hospital , Marina , I have been going there every three weeks to change the catheter. Each time I go to the General Hospital Marina I spend N3, 500 to change the catheter. This is because without the catheter, I cannot urinate since my penis does not function again.”

Gov. Uduaghan

Recapping his life history, Mr. Ememifeozor disclosed that the accident happened when he was going about looking for job as according to him he had earlier in 2003 lost his wife to a strange sickness because he could not afford to take her to hospital for proper treatment, a situation he said made him vowed to start looking for  a good and well paid job and it was while he was doing this a hit and run bus driver came from his back and knocked him down, leaving him with a punctured urethra and a fractured right leg.

Mr. Ememifeozor also needed an orthopaedic surgery to get his right leg in good condition which doctors at the National Orthopaedic Hospital , Igbobi, Lagos said would cost about N500, 000.
As if that was not enough while Mr. Ememifeozor was in the hospital nursing his pains and gnashing his teeth his landlord sold the house where he was living before he had the accident. The new people that bought the house evicted him and threw his property outside because there was nobody to pay the rent again. “I slept outside for three months under the rain before help came through friends who I’m now squatting with adding that his only younger sister spent all her life savings fighting to save his life.

While lamenting and coursing the day he was born, he revealed that “My parents are dead. I am an orphan. I have a younger sister who is the only person that was attending to me when I was in the hospital. She has spent all she saved for this my problem and it is still not over. She lives in Lagos , but right now, she has no job. She is also searching for job.”

Mr. Ememifeozor who for the past six years could not get any tangible and positive assistance had no other option than to cry out through one of the National daily newspapers appealed to philanthropic individuals, corporate organizations, government particularly Delta State government and even international donor agencies to be able to carry out both urinary and orthopaedic surgeries.

He also cried for money to sustain the changing of the catheter pending when he is able to raise the money for full operation. He equally relied on the magnanimity of Nigerians to continue to maintain the change of the pipe until he goes for the main operation. “Now, I am calling on Nigerians, corporate organizations, Delta State government and every philanthropic individual to come to my aid so that I can use my penis again. I want to get well, get a job, get married and raise children like other people. I once married but my wife died in 2003. I am equally appealing to Nigerians to assist me in changing the catheter as it costs me N3, 500 every three weeks and I don’t have any job now. In short, I am leaving on the bills of some of my friends.”

Moved by the pathetic story of Mr. Ememifeozor and his subsequent appeal for help, in his magnanimity, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, the governor of Delta state in his usual sympathy for man kind and as a first class medical Doctor held the cry of the orphan and without wasting a single time he swiftly offered to underwrite the medical bills to enable him undergo a urinary surgery operation at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital in Lagos.

Before I forget I must let the public know that this is not the first time governor Uduaghan has rendered such magnanimity assistance to the less privileged to regain their health.

According to a statement issued in Asaba from the office of the Delta state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Oma Djebah, stated that the state government decided to take charge of the medical treatment of Mr. Ememifeozor in order to enable him obtain urgent urinary surgical operations to correct the defect in order to make him live a normal life again.

The Commissioner stated that this intervention from government is in line with the governor Uduaghan’s policy of thrust of developing the human capital development and infrastructure development.

Mr. Djebah also disclosed that the governor has already directed the state Ministry of Health to handle Mr. Ememifeozor’s case. “It would be recalled that Mr. Francis Ememifeozor, who is an indigene of Ogwashi-Uku, Delta state had appealed to individuals, corporate organizations, governments, particularly Delta state government and even international donor agencies to come to his aid to enable him carry out both urinary and orthopaedic surgery to enable him live a normal life again.”

In real sense of it, it is not a hidden fact that governor Uduaghan has a serious passionate feelings for everything that has to do with the human health and to that effect the governor went extra miles catering for pregnant women thereby declaring their ante-natal treatment as well as other treatments and delivery free in all government hospitals across the state even both non-indigenes from across the federation are also beneficiaries of the governor’s good gesture.

Because of the love for the governor for issues concerning the human health, immediately he came across Mr. Ememifeozor’s cry for help, he swung into action to wipe the accident victim tears by underwriting his medical bills to enable him undergo a urinary surgery operation at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital in Lagos.

It will not be a crime if I mention to the whole world that another milestone in healthcare delivery in Delta State was reached in May this year as Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan flagged-off free Medicare programme for children aged below five years.

The epoch making ceremony was packaged as part of activities to mark this year’s Children’s Day celebrations in the state held at the Central Hospital , Sapele and headquarters of Sapele Local Government Area.

In his address, Governor Uduaghan said free health service for the under five is not restricted to out patients but includes admission and surgery.

The programme, he added became imperative because most parents cannot afford to pay hospital bills and thus take their kids to quarks or out rightly give up and allow the children to die.
The Governor further said that the under five free healthcare service commences from the day of conception and stressed that “God has given us a responsibility as parents and as a responsibility as government to take care of these children.”

Governor Uduaghan who recalled that his administration had earlier introduced free maternal healthcare, used the occasion to caution health workers not to derail the new scheme.
He said: “Let me appeal to our health workers that this programme for our children should not be sabotaged. “If as a health worker you and you are carrying our illegalities against this particular programme, I might not be in a position to catch you. But God that sees everything will be seeing you,” he said.
In his address, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Joseph Otumara noted that as the bedrock upon which the state and the country depends, it is incumbent to keep children in the best possible condition of health in order to guarantee a healthy and rewarding future for all.
While saying that records from the hospitals show that children below the age of five years are vulnerable to a wide range of disease conditions, Dr. Otumara stated that the introduction of free under five Medicare programme was intended to reduce infant mortality in the state.

Also in keeping with his administration’s policy of bringing health care delivery to the doorstep of every Deltans, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan recently commissioned a 60-bed hospital at Ubulu-Uku in Aniocha South Local Government Area.

The hospital which was built at a cost of N207 million is the constituency project on Hon. (Mrs.) Amaechi Mrakpor, the member representing Aniocha South in the state House of Assembly.

In his remarks, Governor Uduaghan reiterated that healthcare remained a key programme in the implementation of the State Government.

According to him, “Health is key to the attainment of peace, human capital development and infrastructural development”.

The governor assured that the state government will continue to accord priority to health related issues because it believes that health care for the citizenry should start from the day of conception.

Governor Uduaghan, who commended Hon. (Mrs.) Amaechi Mrakpor for using her position to attract the hospital project to her community, reminded Legislators that legislative business goes beyond making laws.

He used the occasion to call on restive communities to emulate the peaceful disposition of the people of Ubulu-Uku to allow for the quick completion of projects in their areas. “There are some communities were projects are delayed because the youths are either demanding for illegal development fee or some other things”, the governor added.

In his welcome address, the state Health Commissioner, Dr. Joseph Otumara noted that the establishment of the hospital and many others across the state was a clear demonstration of the state government’s resolve to bring qualitative and affordable health services to the people.,...

Demonstrating the state government readiness to champion the course of its subjects, the state Deputy Governor, Professor Amos Utuama (SAN) recently implored private medical practitioners to refer indigent patients to government hospitals to take care of the Delta State Government free medicare scheme. “The Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan administration as part of its human capital development agendum runs free medicare for pregnant women, children under five and for rural dwellers.

Prof. Utuama, speaking at the 5^th Annual Conference of Catholic Medical Association in Effurun urged private medical practitioners not to allow indigent patients to go without medicare. “While the medical ethics urge you to be savers of life in line with the Catholic faith, pecuniary interest may sometime cause a doctor to refuse to treat a patient without means. This certainly will be contrary to both the medical professional ethics and our Catholic faith, particularly, where the patient dies. Where a medical doctor is unable to offer free treatment to an indigent patient, he is urged to refer the patient to a government hospital to take advantage of the available free medical programme.” he said.

 According to the deputy governor “It is gratifying to note that the needy patient is not left without hope. The Delta State Government under the leadership of one of yours, His Excellency Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan has under the agenda of human capital development introduced free maternal healthcare, free rural healthcare and free under five healthcare in the State in order to make medical care accessible to the less privileged and at no cost. There is no doubt that these programmes will promote Holistic Healthcare as well as make doctors less vulnerable to the breach of their professional oaths of engagement and where they are Catholic, the Catholic  faith,” he said.

However I must not end this piece without thanking the Delta state government for its magnanimity and to use this medium to still appeal on behalf of the victim to all well spirited individuals, corporate organizations, governments and international donor agencies to come to come to the aid of the accident victim, Mr. Ememifeozor because Delta state government can not do it alone and that doesn’t mean that since governor Uduaghan has done something thereby its all over NO, lets try to be our brothers keeper in all circumstances in life.

My fellow brethrens all your donations should be channel to the Bank accounts below and may God bless you all as you continue to save souls.
Account name: Francis Ememifeozor
Bank: UBA Bode Thomas
Type of account: Savings
Account number: 00800520163650
Or
Account name: Francis Ememifeozor
Bank: Diamond, Bode Thomas
Type of account: Savings
Account number: 0511060007009

Prince Amour Udemude, Niger Delta STANDARD Newspaper Government House Correspondent, Asaba, Delta State.