How negligence by govt hospitals staff killed Mailafia, MBF claims

The Middle Belt Forum has reacted to the death of a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Obadiah Mailafia, which caught political observers by surprise considering his hitherto healthy status.

Ripples Nigeria had reported that Mailafia died on Sunday morning as confirmed by a cousin of the late former Deputy Governor of the CBN.

The family member had noted that the deceased only complained of malaria on Friday and the family never believed that could lead to his death two days later.

However, in a statement issued on Sunday by Isuwa Dogo, its national publicity secretary, the Middle Belt Forum criticised the unfortunate series of events that snowballed into Mailafia’s demise.

The forum said he died at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, after he had been taken to the CBN Hospital and EHA Clinics, respectively.

The group insinuated that staff of the various hospitals he had been taken to neglected to perform their assigned tasks diligently, otherwise Mailafia may have been saved.

The statement reads, “Arising from various enquiries from Nigerians over the circumstances of his death, the Forum wishes to state as follows: That Dr Mailafia arrived in Abuja last Sunday, September 12, 2021 from Akure and was received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport by his wife.

“On arrival at home, the wife noticed he was not in the best of health conditions and seemed to be suffering from malaria. After three days of treatment without signs of improvement, he went to the CBN Hospital on Friday, September 17, 2021 where he was shabily treated. It took the intervention of a senior medic who immediately placed him on oxygen and admitted him.

“Dr Mailafia was later given the option of choosing three hospitals: Gwagwalada Hospital, National Hospital and EHA Clinics. The wife opted for the third choice. On arrival at the EHA Clinics, the wife was subjected to yet another moment of anxiety as it took a direct order from the top management of the hospital to accept him.

“After few hours of treatment, the EHA Clinics told the wife that it was expedient to transfer the former CBN Deputy Governor to Gwagwalada as the clinic was not fully equipped to handle the case.”

Dogo further narrated how Mailafia’s wife registered her opposition to the transfer of her husband to Gwagwalada but succumbed when the consultant assured her that nothing bad will happen to her husband.

Read also: MAILAFIA: Five things people probably didn’t know about one of Buhari’s fiercest critics

The Forum stated that on arrival at the Gwagwalada Hospital on Saturday, “the name of the doctor that was billed to attend to Dr Mailafia was not on duty.

“At a point, Dr Mailafia complained over his breathing problems and pleaded with the doctors to place him on a ventilator. The doctors flatly refused.

“The doctors in Gwagwalada refused all entreaties by the family members of Dr Mailafia to follow the advice of the foreign consultants, insisting that they have already pronounced him dead.”

Consequently, the Forum expressed its condolences to the family of the late politician while awaiting the actual cause of death before commencing investigations.

“In this period of grief, we extend our sympathy to his immediate family members and pray to the Almighty God to grant each and everyone of them the fortitude to bear the pain of this irreparable loss,” the statement reads.

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