Taraba: LG Chair offers free medical treatment for citizens

Caretaker Chairman of Kurmi local government council in Taraba state, Honourable Stephen Ibrahim Agya Thursday flagged off free surgical and medical treatment for people of his local government.

Performing the flag off ceremony, Agya said the despite the lean financial resources of the local government, his administration embarked on the programme to save lives and put smiles on the faces of the people.

He added that the programme was conceived five years ago when he contested for the chairmanship position of the local government.

“Kurmi is the richest and yet poorest local government in Taraba state. Kurmi is blessed with a lot of potential and only healthy people can harnessed these potential, that’s why we embark in this free medical treatment programme, knowing that ‘health is wealth’.

“This medical programme is totally free and will last for one week. We shall carry on the programme until everyone with medical challenge without resources to access medical service especially those in the hinterlands benefit from the service.

“We must liberate our people. Kurmi is a pace setter in Taraba and its name must be heard in Nigeria as a pace setter local government,” he told the gathering.

Earlier, Chief of Kurmi, Maiwuya Samaila expressed delight over the free medical health services of the caretaker chairman and urged the people to support the chairman.

He decried the bad nature of the Marraban-Baissa- Abong-Cameroon road, connecting the local government headquarters (Baissa) with the rest of the world which has not receive attention since the colonial days.

Samaila who informed that the road was a federal government road, appealed to the federal government to open up the road to enable investors come into the local government to harnessed the abundant resources in the area such as, Cocoa, Rubber, Kola, Palm oil among other natural resources deposits in Kurmi.

Dr. Danga I. Danga one of the seven doctors participating in the exercise told reporters that the programme was designed to accommodate 300 to 400 patients in the first week and commended Hon. Agya for ensuring that all the medical requirements for the exercise were in place.

“We are prepared for any emergency in the week long programme, but primarily, we treating cases like, hepatitis, appendicitis, peptic ulcer, malaria, typhoid, HIV/ AIDS testing and counselling among others,” he said.

At the event many people turn out for the free medical service, while 10 persons underwent successful surgery on the first day of the exercise.