FCTA officials attacked as they seal off health facilities due to irregularities

Favour Ishember , Abuja

Authorities of the were harassed and attacked by local security outfit and police officers in River Park estate, in Lugbe area of the capital city,, as they sealed off two health facilities for providing services below the recommended standard within the territory

The incident took place when the Private Health establishments registration and monitoring committee (PHERMC), under Department of Medical and Diagnostics embarked on the first day of the three day monitoring tour of health facilities in Abuja.

Speaking to newsmen after the exercise, the Registrar of PHERMC, Dr Ayuba Kazzah, who led the team said the facilities were sealed off because they were found to be performing below the recommended standard as well as rendering services beyond the scope approved for them.

He said the purpose of the visit was to ascertain the level of compliance of health facilities in the Territory to the new minimum guidelines set for them as a prerequisite to get full registration.

Kazzah said; “The purpose of the tour is to see our registered facilities and access their level of compliance to the minimum guidelines set for them for registration, to see if the can be given full registration because presently they are on provisional registration.

“Government is actually doing her best just that government cannot do everything but having observed that, we make recommendations whereby government also needs to be there, as you know, as government we also invite people to partner with as, so whoever can support government should support government to get this thing done, we promote the private health facilities, to cover for the places government cannot reach as you could see, we are trying to encourage those ones in those remote areas and you could see the help they’re offering in those communities.”

One of those whose facilities were sealed, Rhoda Michael Adiya told newsmen that; “The place is closed down because of the advert posted on our wall advertising for staff beyond our scope of operation and lack of control when we compare the tests and results.”

When asked if the people whose facilities were sealed off can break the locks and start operating without their knowledge, Kazzah stated thus:

“We have our surveillance system so we keep on monitoring them, they’ll not, because they already know the implications, so they’ll come to sort their selves out but if they don’t, we have our surveillance system, if they break it we will move in again.

“They’ll come first and we will give them our findings, they have a penalty to pay, we will comply with the directives to put the places in order before they can be opened, the undertaking is that we are closing up these place to put them in order and when we are done, we will write to them to notify them, then we will come and verify before they recommence services.” He stated.

On the situation which led to the confrontation between the security man attached to the FCTA team and other police officials stationed in River Park estate, for trying to obstruct the work of FCTA officials, until the DPO in Lugbe calmed the situation down.

He said; “About the harassment of the security man attached to our team and all of us, we can’t let it go, we will report every encounter we got so far.”

“It is only in River Park we have gotten such ugly experience, it is a surprise that they chose to do that. We stopped by the gate it was the security people that directed us to our way, they didn’t tell us about their management, until we started doing our work, that was when they came and started telling us about protocols, and harassing us but they can’t stop government from doing her work.”