The administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has budgeted N500 million for the establishment of a new federal medical centre in Daura, Katsina State, Mr Buhari’s hometown.

This is contained in the N20.5 trillion 2023 budget proposal presented to the National Assembly by the President earlier in October.

When completed, the hospital will rank Katsina as the only state in Nigeria with two Federal Medical Centres.

The Federal Medical Centre, Katsina, is one of the existing 22 Federal Medical Centres distributed across the states of the federation and Abuja, the nation’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The distance between Daura and Katsina is 83.6 kilometres, and it takes about one hour to travel between the two towns by road.

While Katsina is billed to have two FMCs, there are 15 other states of the federation that are currently without such a medical centre.

But the government has kept mute on the matter, describing it as a policy decision.

FMC Distribution
According to the Federal Ministry of Health, based on the six geopolitical zones, four states of Ogun, Lagos, Ekiti and Ondo in the South-west region have a federal medical centre each, while only Delta and Bayelsa in the South-south region have one each.

Like the South-South region, only two states of Imo and Abia in the South-east have the presence of FMCs while in the North-east, five states of Bauchi, Gombe, Taraba, Yobe and Adamawa, have a centre each.

In the North-central region of the country, Niger, Kogi, Benue and the FCT have one each, and in the North-west, four states of Kebbi, Jigawa, Zamfara and Katsina also have one centre each. But this may change soon if the new proposal by the President is accepted and another FMC is completed in Mr Buhari’s hometown of Daura in Katsina State.

The states without FMC include Oyo and Osun in South-west; Akwa-Ibom, Rivers, Edo and Cross River in South-south; Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu in South-east; Kano, Kaduna and Sokoto in North-west; Plateau and Kwara in North-central, and Borno in North-East.

Plan for FMC Daura in top gear
Findings by PREMIUM TIMES have revealed that Governor Aminu Masari-led administration in the state has declared support for the establishment of the new federal medical centre.
The governor has approved that an existing general hospital in the President’s town should be upgraded by the Federal Government to the new FMC. And in addition, the governor announced a donation of 50 hectares of land for the project.

The government has since directed the Katsina State Ministry of Health to liaise with the Ministry of Lands and Surveys to commence the demarcation of the land in Daura as well as the process of issuing the Certificate of Occupancy (CofO) to the Federal Ministry of Health.

More than FMC
Since Mr Buhari assumed office as the President of Nigeria in 2015, his hometown of Daura has been regarded by many Nigerians as a “construction site” following the growing and an unprecedented number of capital projects located in the town.

In August 2019, the Nigerian government inaugurated the Nigerian Air Force Reference Hospital in the town.

According to Daily Trust, the hospital has equipment for radio-diagnosis, cancer screening, dialysis, laboratory diagnosis and research and the President was quoted to have said the hospital would “minimise the need for people to travel to other states and even abroad for health reasons”.

Similarly, in November same year, the Women and Children Hospital, Daura was established in the town by a philanthropist. The effort, the donor was quoted to have said, would reduce maternal and infant mortality.

The Project Manager, Mansor Korfi during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on the health facility, stated that the hospital was to be built by Belamaoil Producing Limited “based on the demand of the people of Daura, who were asked to name a particular project to be sited in their area.”

There are other projects including the Transport University and others such as electrification and provision of solar systems, and rehabilitation of the Kongolam-Daura-Kano road.

In fact, more than 13 ongoing projects in the President’s hometown have been allocated more than N200 million in the 2023 budget proposal. They include the establishment of a booster station, the establishment of a Bioresources centre, the fabrication of prototype machinery for the production of jute bags and allied products, and the development of an industrial tannery, among others.

The President has consistently emphasised his plans to retire to his hometown after completing his tenure in 2023 to take charge of his “abandoned farm”. Therefore, the turnaround of his hometown may not be unconnected with the retirement plan.

God1000:
Every leader in Nigeria does that, or else you will be insulted by your people.

David Mark and Olusegun Obasanjo are some nigerian politicians that did nothing in their home towns when they still had the opportunity.

Nigeria is a very funny country

clockwisereport:
When completed, the hospital will rank Katsina the only state in Nigeria with two Federal Medical Centres while 15 other states are without such a hospital.


https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/569263-months-to-tenure-expiration-fg-to-build-new-medical-centre-in-buharis-hometown.html

checkmatez:
Humans are naturally greedy....

Same way we have over 250 tribal group in Nigeria yet the Yorubas can't rest after completing 8years of being the Vice_ president.

checkmatez:
Humans are naturally greedy....

Same way we have over 250 tribal group in Nigeria yet the Yorubas can't rest after completing 8years of being the Vice_ president.