Mr Odekunle, a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, died Tuesday from COVID-19.

By Ebuka Onyeji

The frantic bid to save Femi Odekunle from COVID-19 complications yielded donations and pledges of over 170 cylinders of oxygen from his family, friends and close associates, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt.

Mr Odekunle, a professor of criminology and member of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), battled the highly infectious disease for 12 days.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the professor was left gasping for air during his treatment due to shortages in oxygen supply at the isolation centre at the Abuja University Teaching Hospital Gwagwalada. He died on Tuesday evening at the facility.

In a bid to save him, his friends, largely top government officials and politicians rallied for oxygen from far and near to support his breathing, those familiar with the matter told PREMIUM TIMES.

This resulted in the donation of over 170 oxygen cylinders by friends and associates. It is unclear if some of the pledges were eventually redeemed since the professor died before a good number of the equipment are delivered.

The hospital’s Chief Medical Director (CMD), Bissallah Ekele, admitted there was shortage of oxygen in the facility, a situation he blamed on the recent surge in coronavirus infections officially declared the second wave.

He, however, said Mr Odekunle died because of the “severity of his infection.”

The medical director, in a text message Thursday afternoon to this reporter, said “when we had the crises last week, some patients and other Hospitals in the FCT supported us with cylinders of Oxygen but that was resolved as soon as the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 waged into the matter and we now have adequate supply!”

Scramble for Oxygen

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, signing the Y2021 Appropriation Bill into Law at Lagos House, Marina, on Thursday, December 31, 2020.

According to details obtained by PREMIUM TIMES, there were multiple interventions by the governors of Lagos and Osun, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Adegboyega Oyetola, the health ministry, the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19, and the Air Force to procure oxygen for Mr Odekunle.

Rauf Aregbesola, the minister of interior, led the intervention process, our sources said.

While efforts to get oxygen began over the weekend, many of them did not arrive before Tuesday evening when Mr Odekunle died.

Our sources said the Gwagwalada isolation centre hurriedly sent 100 big cylinders, through the efforts of the Nigerian Air Force, for refill in Yola, the Adamawa State capital. Those were billed to be delivered to Abuja on Tuesday.

The facility was also to receive about 50 big cylinders from Jos on Tuesday. It is unclear who made that donation.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that 10 oxygen cylinders were delivered to Mr Odekunle’s bedside by a donor identified as NHA late Monday.

Also, four big cylinders were stationed at Air Force base, Ikeja, Lagos, to be flown to Mr Odekunle’s ward on Tuesday morning.

Another 10 big oxygen cylinders were also arranged by Olu Aina, a professor, and Mr Aregbesola, from Osogbo, and were scheduled to be flown to Abuja by special helicopter.

This newspaper also learnt that one big cylinder was donated by the Nigerian Air Force and was delivered to Mr Odekunle’s ward by his son, Dayo, and an official of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).

“A lot of the oxygen procured for Professor Odekunle were not delivered before he died,” an associate of the late University teacher said. “I think in the interest of humanity, his friends and family should ensure that all the oxygen cylinders donated and pledged are delivered to the isolation centre to save the lifes of patients still alive.”

In a statement he released after Mr Odekunle’s passage, former Minister Olu Agunloye said the late professor’s “friends rose stoutly to his support … but it was just too late.”

“Top Government functionaries amongst them led by Hon Minister Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola along with President’s Spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, SGF Boss Mustapher and two sitting Governors tore through bureaucracies and red tapes and pulled stunts but the damages to Femi’s health appeared to have gone too far for remedy,” Mr Agunloye said.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/434285-how-the-scramble-to-save-femi-odekunles-life-yielded-over-170-oxygen-cylinders.html

Well. Dr bissallah this man na senior man.


Nigger has been a been a consultant since 1994. Hmm

What a sad story! No matter the equiupment beside ur hospital bed... Na God dae protect person

I came to realize last year that money does not save someone.
There are situations when the so called money become useless to the individual.
R.I.P Mr man.

MAKE HIM GO TELL GOD, WATIN HIM DEY ADVICE BUHARI










THIEVES AND CLOWNS

Bringing back memories. Mhen health is the greatest wealth one can ever have


Fix the country for all, they said no, they rather fix their individual homes and pockets and they forgot that God is not man that anybody can deceive.


Shame on all Nigerian political leaders from 1960 to date, you all failed Nigeria and Nigerians yet unborn.


Thunder fire all those they call our heroes past, they are our enemies for life; they built the terrible foundation upon which this failed Nigeria of today was built upon.


God will judge you all one after the other, just a matter of time!

James4358:
What a sad story! No matter the equiupment beside ur hospital bed... Na God dae protect person

you no suppose use any equipment then

Kai.

Condolences to the Family of the Deceased.

This goes to show that our life is not in our Hands.
As Humans, there is a limit to which we can operate.

The only one who has the Capability and Capacity to Do all things is GOD ALMIGHTY.

For us to succeed this year, we Must Submit to HIM and Meet HIM on HIS terms..

Happy 2021 to All

f**lish pipu full Nairaland

Nigeria needs complete restructuring...

We're this underdeveloped because a certain part of this country doesn't value education while the other part of the country is so good at looting that their educational achievement is nothing but nonsensical because there's no practical application of learning while those with good brains run away before Nigeria and it's wicked leaders kill their dreams.

As part of restructuring, we must operate this country on a new constitution that gives rights to states to manage their affairs themselves, from revenue to spending and all... while extremely strong autonomous bodies are created to checkmate each other in the states... Every affairs of the states must be public knowledge, down to security vote spending...

Each state must spend minimum of twenty five percent of its budget on education... Colleges of science and technical institutes must be established and fully funded...

Death should be the price for corruption.

Churches in the south must contribute 50 percent of their revenue from offerings and other donations to funding public education and health.

Fück you and your ideology if you think churches shouldn't do the above.

Each state must make laws that caters for the welfare of indigens of the state...

If majority of the people of a state want Sharia law then give them Sharia.

If you go to their state, be ready to obey their Sharia law just as you won't Mess up in Saudi Arabia or UAE...

Respect each other.

Reduce federal government role to national policy making that doesn't conflict with state policy... national defense, and migration so that if a corrupt thief from the south becomes president he won't see money to loot and if an illiterate from the north becomes president he won't frustrate western educational progress in the south because his religion does not really fancy it.

This country is a dream killer.

All those looting the resources of this country and contributing to killing the hopes and dreams of millions of Nigerian via corruption and nepotism, from governor to president to lawmakers and judges all of you will die untimely death... Sorrow and deadly diseases will never depart from your head and your household. You and your family will never know happiness just as u have put millions of Nigerians in poverty and suffering despite the riches of the country.

That's my new year message to Nigerians and all leaders in Nigeria.

Emergency no be wetin dem dey run go buy medical supplies for

Died before dying

Wonder what will happen to the 170 oxygen cylinders? will they go back hoarding it till one of them needs it?

If not for the pandemic they would have flown him abroad.

Why can't we do what is right without being arm twisted.

What hope then does the ordinary man have? When you need your big men connections to get Oxygen in a University Teaching Hospital

RIP

K

/
Good for him.

They think it is about packing money in their accounts. Something as little as oxygen concentrator would have saved him.

Even Aso Rock clinic has no oxygen?

/

N

They waited till the life of a fellow big man is in danger before running around for oxygen equipment.
who knows whether he would have been alive today if those 170 equipment were already donated to the hospital in the beginning of covid19.

our elites are worst than the devil

I thank God I made the right decision not to take my dad to the Gwagwalada isolation Centre when he needed oxygen rather he was taken to EHA clinics at LifeCamp. Even though it cost us 135k a night but I was rest assured he would get oxygen unlike a government-owned death facility!

We really need to do better! It was a needless death

darocha1:
Why can't we do what is right without being arm twisted.

We have done d right thing. We have shared d money meant for buying oxygen

Ehya

A sorry situation in the land.

Yh

justosee:
They waited till the life of a fellow big man is in danger before running around for oxygen equipment.

our elites are worst than the devil

Corruption killed d man. Ironically he was on a committee fighting against corruption not that buhari cared about d input from d committee

As you lay your bed.

Even those who say there is no Corona virus in Nigeria will rush here to bash the government over shortage of cylinder now.

Problem no de finish