From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The member of the House of Representatives representing Ahoada West/Ogba/ Egbema/ Ndoni Federal Constituency of Rivers State, Victor Obuzor, has said that the House may establish Optical Research Institutes across the six geo-political zones in the country.
Obuzor, who is the sponsor of a bill for the establishment of Federal Institute for Vision and Optical Research, in Rivers State, stated this, in an interview with journalists, after a public hearing on the proposed legislation.
The lawmaker, while expressing delight over the overwhelming support for the proposed legislation, said the parliament is impressed with the proposed institute and might come up with bills for the establishment of similar Institutes in the different geo-political zones.
He described the proposed institute as an urgent necessity, owing to the high number of persons suffering from sight related diseases. According to him, with an estimated 50 million Nigerians currently affected by visual disabilities, and over seven million already blind, it is imperative to take decisive steps to address the issue.
Obuzor said: “as guardians of public health, we must address the escalating prevalence of vision impairment, particularly in underserved communities.
“The proposed institute
represents a crucial step towards mitigating this growing public health challenge and ensuring a brighter future for our citizens.”
The lawmaker, while speaking on the bill for the establishment of a Federal College of Optometry, which he also sponsored, noted that the desire of any government is to have a population of healthy citizens.
“This is why governments all over the
world, including Nigeria continues to fund health related and infrastructure as well as basic health and eye care services to ensure that health sector objectives are actualised.
“The impact of optometric care is growing worldwide and countries have devoted huge resources towards the development of infrastructure and human capital to ensure that this vital organ of the human body is given its pride of place; because without the eyes, life and living would be difficult”, he stated.