A Bill to stop public servants from travelling abroad at the
expense of the Federal Government for treatment of ailments that can be
satisfactorily tackled in Nigeria, is to be presented to the Federal
Executive Council, FEC, this year.
President Goodluck Jonathan, is also billed to flag off a stroke
awareness campaign in Abuja, as part of measures to tackle the rising
burden of stroke, hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases in the
country.
Disclosing this, weekend, during the presentation of his score card
to the press, Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, said the
Federal Ministry of Health was already compiling a list of health
facilities that could handle specific ailments that Nigerians often go
abroad to treat.
Chukwu, who observed that the Bill, which was being carefully
composed, would become effective this year, asserted that compilation of
the list began last year. He said even though the list is not
exhaustive, it is being regularly updated.
His words: “It is correct to say the Federal government will not
sponsor any case that can be satisfactorily handled in Nigeria. We are
still at the level of the top management committee of the health
ministry. It is a long process, we do not want to send a half-baked memo
to the FEC, so it has to be well thought out and we have to carry
people along.
“It is not enough for the Minister of Health to ask the
President-in-Council that we should no longer sponsor public servants
for cases that can be handled in Nigeria. We should know where these
cases can be handled here.
source : VanguardNGR
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