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De-emphasise talks about healthcare sector challenges – Tinubu tells Pate
President Bola Tinubu has directed the Minister of Health, Ali Pate, to de-emphasise speaking about the health sector’s challenges and rather engage with development partners to birth new reforms that would improve the health and well-being of Nigerians.
Tinubu bared his mind when he had an audience with the minister at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday, specifically directing Pate to pursue a very ambitious sector-wide programme that would improve population health outcomes, using the basic healthcare provision fund as a basis for reviving the primary health care system.
Tinubu also told Pate to explore ways of enhancing seamless working relationships between state governments, community leaders, and traditional leaders to ensure that Nigerians get better quality services to deal with the issues that bother them, whether it’s malaria, immunisation, maternal and child health, or reproductive health, among others.
Pate, who met with the President in the company of Prof Seniat Fisseha, a development partner under the auspices of the Susan-Buff Foundation, assured that going forward, plans are underway to design a social action fund to reach communities.
He said they would work to get the trust of the community dwellers, through which they would be empowered and supported to solve issues that are very simple but afflicting many of the people at the grassroots level.
“While having an audience with the President, we discussed some important issues regarding Nigerians’ health and social well-being. As we all know, the President is very committed and has directed that we do all we can to improve the health and well-being of all Nigerians as part of his renewed hope agenda.
”Accordingly, in recent days, he has approved three important steps for us to move forward and has asked us to talk less and do more. And in that spirit, he, in fact, has asked us to pursue a very ambitious sector-wide programme to improve population health outcomes, using the basic healthcare provision fund as a basis for reviving our primary healthcare system, working with state governments and community leaders, traditional leaders to ensure that Nigerians get better quality services to deal with the issues that bother them, whether it’s malaria, whether it’s immunisation, maternal and child health, reproductive health—those are elements that have a direct bearing on the health and well-being of Nigerians, with the state governments and with our development partners.
“So that sector-wide programme is underway, and our visitor today is committed to working with us to work with countries systems, not set up parallel systems. And we’re very glad that the Susan-Buffett Foundation is willing to partner with the Government of Nigeria to advance the health and well-being of all, especially our adolescent girls and women.
“The second item is to unlock the value chain in the healthcare space. Mr President has also approved a presidential initiative to unlock the healthcare value chain that will help drive the medical industrialisation agenda with clear targets.
“It will require the public and private sectors to work hand in hand. Government does what it needs to do to provide the enabling environment and the private sector getting his act together to ensure that we produce the things critical for Nigeria’s health and well-being while creating economic value and creating jobs,” Pate told State House correspondents.
President Bola Tinubu is currently in a crucial security meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, with key figures including the service chiefs, Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Hassan Abubakar and the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun
The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, Director-General of the State Security Service, Oluwatosin Ajayi and DG National Intelligence Agency, Muhammed Muhammed are also in attendance.
While the specific agenda remains unclear, the President regularly receives updates from security chiefs to assess the national security situation.
Notably, President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio the Speaker Tajudeen Abass and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu and Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele were spotted arriving at the villa, though it is uncertain if they participated in the security meeting.
An explosion has rocked the Trans-Niger Pipeline at Bodo, Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The explosion occurred late on Monday night near the Bodo-Bonny Road under construction.
The affected section of the major pipeline is currently on fire, though the exact cause of the explosion remains unknown at this time.
It is not yet clear whether the incident resulted from human interference, especially amid recent threats by militant groups to attack oil installations in the state .
Details to follow….
Members of the Nigerian House of Representatives have donated 705 million naira, amounting to 50% of their basic salaries from July 2024 to December 2024, to support President Bola Tinubu’s initiative to assist vulnerable Nigerians.
The Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, made this known during the breaking of Ramadan fast with the President and the Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa on Monday.
According to him, this was to show Nigerians that members of the House of Representatives also felt the hardship and understood what they were going through.
Gatekeeper reported that following reports of an impending nationwide mass protest by youths, to express displeasure about the hardship in the country, reflected in the high cost of living, food scarcity, unemployment and so on, members of the House of Representatives agreed to donate 50 per cent of their salaries for a period of six months.
They said the donation was to assist the Tinubu administration in addressing the economic situation in the country.
The resolution of the House was sequel to a motion of urgent importance for “An appeal to the proponents of the proposed nationwide protest, to maintain peace, eschew violence and open windows for meaningful engagements with the governments at all levels in order to address their issues.”
The motion was sponsored by the member representing Ifo/Ewekoro Federal Constituency, Ogun State, Ibrahim Isiaka, during plenary.
Speaking at the Presidential Villa on Monday, Abbas announced that the money was ready to be handed over to the Presidency.
“The House decided on our own that we need to do something symbolic to show our concern to the entire people of Nigeria that the predicament they were in, we also felt it.
“And because of that, we took a resolution that from July 2024 to December 2024 will sacrifice 50% of our basic salaries so I will now set that money aside and contribute and donate to you, so that you can also use it to look at the targeted areas in Nigeria where we have vulnerable people who I need of food, shelter, accommodation, clothing and what have you.
“We leave it to you to decide on where and where you want to intervene. But it is a symbolic contribution from the house to show you, as well as show the whole entire nation, that the passage of that particular period was being felt by each and every one of us.
“Your Excellency, I’m happy to inform you that the House contributed the sum of 705 million naira, being the 50% of our monthly salary for the for a period of six months,” he said.
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