Ehwerido: Repositioning Nigeria’s health sector should be non-negotiable – Senator Ojudu

Senator Babafemi Ojudu says he is still in shock over the death of his colleague, Senator Pius Ehwerido, who he described as a fine gentleman well-schooled in the art of people-oriented lawmaking.

In a statement in Lagos, Ojudu said though death is inevitable, it is always saddening when people who mean well for the country are needlessly lost to the wicked grip of death.

On the cause of Senator Ehwerido’s death which has been attributed to stroke, Ojudu said events like this were what motivated him to bring in 15 medics from the United States of America for a free health mission in his constituency, adding that he could no longer sit on the sidelines and watch while people needlessly die of ailments that can be prevented or managed.

He said he would continue to do his part in this regard until there is adequated access to primary care in Nigeria.

Ojudu, who represents Ekiti Central, said he would also continue to fight for a complete overhaul of the Nigerian health sector in line with acceptable global practices.

He urged the National Assembly to make the fight a priority, adding that many Nigerians die daily of the same cause, but no one really hears about them because they are not in the limelight.

Ojudu believed that if the country’s leadership was serious about repositioning her, sincere fundamental restructuring of the health sector should be non-negotiable.

The lawmaker also lamented that the kind of pressure and demands that lawmakers have to cope with from their constituents on a daily basis are detrimental to their health, adding that many spend all their day receiving calls and text messages with little or no time to rest while their homes and offices are also bombarded by favour-seekers.

He said this should be a wake-up call to the country’s leadership to think up lasting poverty-alleviating programmes to take off this pressure off the lawmakers and allow them focus on their legislative duties.

He prayed God to grant the family of Senator Ehwerido, the Senate and the people of Delta State the strength to wade through times like this.