COVID-19: How Corruption, Negligence, Ineptitude At UMTH Led To The Death Of Shehu Of Bama, Two Other Prominent Citizens Of Borno

As a University Teaching Hospital under the control of the Federal Government, the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, UMTH, is at the centre of the fight against the deathly Coronavirus pandemic, Desert Herald is reporting.

The mandate of the hospital like all other related hospitals in such a crisis situation is simple; to investigate and refer all suspicious cases of COVID-19 to the National Centre for Disease and Control, NCDC for further medical evaluation, isolation and treatment.

 

This paper learnt that since the emergence of the COVID-19 and in an effort to contain the spread of the disease the federal government has made special financial provision for priority hospitals like UMTH and are liaising actively with the NCDC. In addition to that, this paper also gathered that the Borno State Government is also supporting UMTH financially in that direction.

 

DESERT HERALD can authoritatively report that the UMTH under the current Chief Medical Director, CMD, Dr Ahmed Ahidjo are taking the advantage of the COVID-19 largesse and financial provision to exaggerate and convert medical cases that are not entirely related to Coronavirus as one.

 

Investigation in the hospital revealed that even patients that are consulting in the hospital for many years and with proper medical record with known medical cases of sicknesses like asthma, pneumonia, diabetes and even acute malaria and typhoid fever are being rejected for consultation even if their cases are emergency.

 

In many instances and where such patients are lucky to be admitted they will be left no or without proper treatment for a simple suspicion that they might have been infected with Coronavirus.

 

And if such patients couldn’t make it and eventually died due to professional negligence of the hospital officials and the culture of corruption that has consumed the management of the hospital since the coming of Dr Ahidjo, the death body will be subjected to all forms of humiliation and criminal protocol before it is either released for burial or on the false recommendation of the hospital, NCDC officials will take over the burial where so far they have breached all religious obligations and rites.

 

While families of the victims were NEVER given any official, conclusive results to prove that their loved ones actually died of COVID-19 and that their medical records in the hospital is very clear about their nature of sicknesses, they will be forced to accept the narration that their loved ones died of Coronavirus and that as such their bodies will not be release to the families for burial.

 

In Nigeria today and while there is no doubt about the pandemic of Coronavirus and its deadly nature, some officials at high level are taking advantage of the billions in allocation to fraudulently justify ‘raising’ cases of the virus even when there are instances of the contrary.

 

Allegations against NCDC officials, the Presidential Task Force, PTF, on COVID-19 and indeed willing hospitals like the UMTH of conniving and using such billions as conduit-pipe is growing by the day.

 

Suspicious cases of manipulating and exaggerating the sicknesses and number of infections and deaths such as the one we mentioned is increasing by the day while state governments especially in Borno and Kano states are doing nothing or little to check the excesses, fraud and manipulations of hospital officials.

 

In Borno state for example, the government despite demonstrating preparedness in the fight against the COVID-19 and resolved to protect the rights of its citizens, it has allowed UMTH and other fraudulent officials of the NCDC to take decisions on death bodies without regard to religious obligations and even when the hospital in many instances cannot prove that such deaths are as a result of the COVID-19 infection.

 

Despite the millions, they don’t have testing equipment that will determine the status of the so called patients that are in high risk of contracting the virus hence families are usually given the painful option of either allowing the death bodies of their loved ones in the maturity for as long as possible, or the hospital and the NCDC officials will subject it to their own form of burial which has violated the provisions of the religion.

 

The late Shehu of Bama this paper learnt from credible family sources was rushed to the UMTH on a case of severe headache. Though he was promptly attended to because of his status but could not make it eventually.

 

Pundits wondered how can a case of severe headache suddenly turned to Coronavirus while there is no evidence of the Coronavirus test that was so far given to the late Shehu’s family by the UMTH.

 

Another case of professional negligence that eventually led to death, all in an attempt to exaggerate the COVID-19 spread and to justify spending is that of the current member of the Borno State House of Assembly, Hon. Bukar Wakil Lawan, a member representing Nganzai Constituency.

 

His relatives and wife have all lamented the manner he was treated and allowed to die by the notorious UMTH under Dr Ahidjo. According late Wakil’s daughter, her father has been battling with chronic diabetes for over 20 years. He is also asthmatic since when he’s a child. The diabetes rose to 19 and had an asthma attack.

 

On reaching UMTH and even though his case is emergency they refused to accept him and instead referred him to a COVID-19 hospital for clearance before he will be accepted. Such arrangements in emergency cases is akin to risking the life of a patient as the minimum days COVID-19 result will be out in Nigeria is two weeks.

 

This paper was told that that was the understanding the NCDC had with BOSG and the designated hospitals in the state capital; to first refer such cases of asthma, diabetes etc even if emergency to COVID-19 hospital under NCDC.

 

At the hospital, the initial and preliminary confirmation the NCDC are doing is with the temperature device. They did it on late Wakil and all those that are with him. All their temperature was okay suggesting that they are not potential COVID-19 carriers. Late Wakil was supposed to be cleared immediately in view of his condition to proceed to the UMTH.

 

But the story eventually changed as they insisted that he must sleep with them. And unfortunately throughout the night at the COVID-19 isolation centre he was left unattended to with nobody to monitor his raising sugar level, administer his insulin injection and give him his inhaler for asthma since all the members of his family that brought him were directed to go home.

 

That was how Hon Wakil died on a fraudulent claim of being a COVID-19 carrier. He confirmed to his daughter in a telephone conversation how he was abandoned throughout the night in the morning before his death.

 

The audio was also made available to DESERT HERALD. After allowing him to die supposedly due to Coronavirus his family was not even allowed to see his death body. He was rushed to the grave in a body bag without even funeral prayers.

 

It was the same propaganda to justify the spending on COVID-19 that led to the death of a former member of the Borno State House of Assembly, Hon. Hassan Maina Bukar on Friday. His family too have lamented the inhuman manner he was subjected to at Dr Ahidjo’s UMTH. Due to the severity of his case, he was admitted at the emergency unit of the hospital.

 

Even though it was an Emergency Unit where doctors, nurses and all medical care supposed to be available 24 hours, late Hassan was left attended to for more than four hours, a time long enough for him to die. He was a diabetes patient at the hospital for many years.

 

His sample was not taken for the COVID-19 test while doctors isolated him because at UMTH they are treating all such cases as Coronavirus case even without medical evaluation. Hon Hassan eventually died.

 

And even though up to the time of his death he has not been tested for Coronavirus, UMTH officials in collaboration with NCDC refused to release his body to his family.

 

They were also given two options; to wait for as long as possible for a fraudulent autopsy result to determine his COVID-19 status or to allow them put him in a body bag and bury him without any Islamic protocol and rites. Instead of leaving him with no time of burial in a mortuary, the helpless family of Alhaji Lawan Usman opted for the later.

 

Eventually, late Hassan in the same clothes he died in and without even washing him as Islam demands was taken to the burial ground. The method of his burial is also against Islam.

 

Is it possible for Hon Wakil and Hon Hassan to die of Coronavirus and that all their family members that interacted actively with them are free from the virus?

 

If the UMTH and NCDC officials are truthful and are not using the pandemic to make millions, are they not supposed to immediately isolate the families of the two Honourable members and conduct an urgent COVID-19 test which as at the time of filling this report, days after their death they have not done it.

 

And if their families are eventually found to be free from the virus it will confirm the claims that the two distinguished personalities were unjustly used and wasted for the purpose of exaggerating a pandemic to get millions out of it.

 

Credible reports by DESERT HERALD reveals that the reckless and insensitive acts of the NCDC officials in Maiduguri and the UMTH has within three weeks caused the death of over thirty patients whose actual sicknesses has NOTHING to do with Coronavirus but was treated as such.

 

Already, calls in the social media by prominent Borno citizens and the larger society has intensified for the immediate sacking of Dr Ahidjo as the CMD of UMTH for what they regarded as his consistent acts of ineptitude, negligence, professional misconduct, fraud and total disregard for the life of his patients.

 

They called on Governor Babagana Umara Zulum to present a formal complaint to the federal government against the CMD that was generally regarded by his workers as very corrupt and insensitive.

 

In UMTH under Dr Ahidjo doctors and nurses are not being held responsible for their rampant acts of professional negligence and misconduct. They are treating patients without regard. Corruption reigns supreme.

 

This paper will in the next report xray the stewardship of Dr. Ahmed Ahidjo as the CMD of UMTH, the many controversies and allegations of corruption under his watch.