Every four years, Nigeria’s political class dazzle Nigerians with grandeous promises to make Nigeria’s heathcare system worldclass. However, the reality is far fetched from the promises that have been made.
The fear of Nigerians have in recent times been heightened by the incoming administration with allegations of the President-elect having unresolved medical issues. Many Nigerians fear that a repeat of what happened during the administration of President first tenure of the outgoing Muhammadu Buhari he spent about 65 days in the United Kingdom on medical tourism would repeat itself. For instance, President Buhari was said to have extended his recent trip to London by a week due to a treatment he is receiving from the dentist. A statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Mr Femi Adesina revealed this.
When will we finally have an healthcare system that can offer quality and affordable health services? When will Politicians stop travelling abroad to receive medical treatment? This question and more are on the minds of Nigerians who wish to reap the dividends of democracy.
Unfortunately, lawmakers, elected officers and political appointees prefer making budgetary allocations for the treatment of themselves and members of their families in foreign hospitals to spending money on the public health sector. This is abysmal and a waste of the country’s resources.
The Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN) estimates that Nigeria spends about N664billion yearly on medical tourism.
With a rising debt profile, Nigeria needs to cut down on unnecessary expenditure that can be curtailed by building in country capacity.
We need a legislation that will deprive public office holders from using tax payers money to fund their medical treatments abroad. We ought to reject leaders who want to place their health burden on the nation’s resources instead of shouldering and providing succour to the plight of Nigerians.
If the health sector in Nigeria will progress, we must be willing to make huge investments to build our capacity as a nation to cater for our health needs and improve the quality of service.