Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike has sacked the Commissioner of Health, Professor Princewill Chike for not seeking the State government’s approval to host the preliminary session of Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, MDCN, in Port Harcourt.
The governor described the unilateral decision of the Commissioner to host the MDNC without the consent of the Rivers State government as most embarrassing.
Governor Wike announced the sack of Professor Chike when the chairman of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, Professor Abba Wasiri Hassan paid him a courtesy visit at the Government House, Port Harcourt on Monday.
The governor explained that the State government never requested to host the preliminary session of Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria in Port Harcourt and stressed that the Commissioner of Health erred to have unilaterally scheduled to host the MDCN event at the same time when the State government is commissioning and flag off of projects.
“Frankly speaking, I have never seen an embarrassment like this in my life. Everybody knows that it is not my nature to bring people and you cannot attend to them or host. So, whoever has done this will suffer for it.”
Governor Wike said the request by the MDCN that State governors should establish one tertiary hospital in each of their senatorial districts will not be realizable due to paucity of funds
The governor explained that in a bid to improve citizens access to quality healthcare service delivery, his administration has embarked on construction of some zonal hospitals in Bori, Degema, Etche, Ahoada and Omoku.
He further stated that his administration has also invested huge amount of resources in promoting medical education in the State, particularly, with the establishment of the Rivers State University College of Medical Sciences and the annual award of scholarship to 130 indigenes of the State studying medicine at PAMO University of Medical Sciences.
The governor said States should be allowed to fix the amount they can afford to pay their workers, including medical personnel.
Earlier, Chairman, Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, Professor Abba Wasiri Hassan, commended Governor Wike for his positive attitude towards healthcare and medical delivery services in Rivers state.
The MDCN chairman urged governors to consider investing in tertiary hospitals in each of the senatorial district in the country in order to increase the number of hospitals available for the training of house officers and to check medical tourism.
