State House Clinic Now To Serve Only Buhari, Osinbajo Families

The State House Medical Centre was on Monday a focal point during the two-hour presentation and defence of the 2019 State House budget by the Permanent Secretary, Jalal Arabi before the Senate Committee on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs.

This was after President Muhammadu Buhari directed that the Medical Centre be converted to a clinic in order to serve its “original purpose” of establishment.

Arabi said ‘‘without prejudice to what is currently obtainable at SHMC, the intention to revert to a clinic is a Presidential directive. This is to make sure that the facility is functional and serves the purpose for which it was established, ab initio.’’

He further said the decision was also in help people ‘‘cut one’s coat according to their cloth.’’

‘‘It was initially meant to serve the first and second families and those working within and around the Villa.

‘‘The overstretching of facilities at the Medical Centre by patients is some of the challenges the Centre has been going through. It wasn’t meant for that purpose.

‘‘Nobody was charging anyone for any services and relying on appropriation means, we will depend on subvention when it comes to run the Centre.

‘‘Whatever comes is what you utilise and if the last patient comes in to take the last drugs based on the last budgetary release, that is it and we have to wait till another release is done.

‘‘But this new development means that services will be streamlined to a clinic that will serve those that it was meant to serve when it was conceived,’’ Arabi added

According to the Perm Sec., the total overhead expenditure released for the centre from January to December 2018 is N331.7 million, representing 99.9 per cent while the capital releases on projects is N231.9 million, and representing 33.2 per cent.

Following this directive the chairman of the committee, SenatornDanjuma La’ah (PDP-Kaduna South) in his remarks accepted the proposal to make the SHMC fully functional and ensure that members of the first and second families use the facilities at the clinic.

‘‘Considering the strategic importance of State House they are not supposed to lack funds and we will keep encouraging them to utilise releases effectively,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, some staff at the State House are kicking against the proposal, alleging that the idea was to privatise the centre and make cost of medical services unaffordable.