Bauchi State Government has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Federal Government through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, ceding and transferring ownership of the General Hospital, Misau, to the Federal Government.
The MoA was signed between the two on Monday in a brief ceremony held at the EXCO Chambers of the Governor’s Office by the Governor, Sen Bala Mohammed Abdulkadir, and the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate.
Speaking during the ceremony, Bala Mohammed declared that only the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Ali Pate, embodies President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration’s renewed hope.
Recall that Bala Mohammed had in recent times been critical of the economic policies and reforms of President Bola Tinubu because, according to him, the policies and reforms have further impoverished the majority of Nigerian citizens.
The Governor, however, believes that the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, under the supervision of Prof. Ali Pate, has been so useful and important in meeting the challenges facing the health sector of the country.
According to him, “I have always said that we are proud of the Minister because he is a good ambassador of Bauchi. The partnership we are having with the minister of state shows the partnership of mutual respect that allows states to actualize their aspiration. ”
The governor stressed, “I can see the teamwork being established by Prof. Pate. We thank you most sincerely. All the governors are with you because you came and gave us the renewed hope agenda, and it is only in you that we are seeing hope because you are doing it with a sense of justice and seriousness.”
He also stated, “And that you are from Bauchi is the responsibility of you and your team, but to the whole country, and this is the kind of leadership we need.”
While praising the President for the appointment of Prof. Pate, Bala Mohammed urged him to appoint people like Prof. Pate to re-invigorate the Federal Cabinet.
He said that the state government would borrow from the programs and initiatives of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare under the leadership of Prof. Pate, stressing that his administration is guided by a plan, ‘My Bauchi Project,’ which is reviewed from time to time to address noticed gaps.
He said that, “This is important to achieve the results we have set out to do. The health infrastructure that you have established during your short time under Mr. President all over the country shows that we have people with foresight.”
Speaking earlier, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate said that the delegation was in Bauchi for a performance management retreat of leaders of federal government health sectors in Bauchi and to revamp federal health institutions in the state, which had begun across the countries.
According to him, “There is also the upgraded Federal University of Health Sciences Teaching Hospital in Azare as well, for which we will sign the MOU with the Governor, signifying the ceding of that general hospital to become a federal establishment.”
“The third is regarding emergency services. Health emergencies occur and are unpredictable. We realise that access to an ambulance to take you to the hospital can be a challenge. We need to find a system to quickly deploy people to health facilities,” he added.
The Minister also said, “We are kicking off the National Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance Scheme (NEMSAS) with the Bauchi State SEMSAS and Rural Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance Scheme with several ambulances.”
He added that “people should not suffer or lose their lives when they are unable to get to facilities quickly. While the Federal Government is doing its part, we also expect the State Governments to complement these efforts so that pregnant women will have safe deliveries.”
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