FOR quite a long time now, it is obvious that the activities of the
Abia State government have been getting negative publicity, most times
fabricated or twisted for selfish and mischievous purpose by a
particular national daily owned by a former governor.
As a regular and avaricious reader of the national dailies, I do take
my time to dissect the editorial contents of each to en able me judge
their objectivity, balance and fairness.
I have observed that for a while now this national daily has not
reported any positive news about the state and it has always been about
allegation, criticisms or condemnation of the state government’s
activities or policies.
The question begging to be answered is has nothing positive
happened or happening in the state or does it mean this particular
national daily has an axe to grind with the state government. This
becomes worrisome as positive news report about giant strides by the
Abia State government have been reported in other national dailies
and even in the electronic media. For example, it was reported recently
that the State government empowered 4,500 youths by employing them in
the council areas.
These unemployed youths were engaged and are being paid monthly,
while they still have time to engage in other activities to improve
their lot. What a step in the right direction given the unemployment
challenges across the nation.
Apart from this, the government had also released millions of naira
for the settlement of the arrears of pensioners in the state,
introduced radical reforms in the civil service. The government has
repaired some federal roads in the state and has promised to do more
if the Federal government is not forth coming. There are so many
completed and ongoing projects across the state now and contractors are
being mobilised adequately to ensure speedy completion.
None of these above -mentioned giant strides of the State government
which had been reported in the other national dailies in the country,
was reported by this particular national daily. Within the month of
January this year alone, I had read two prominent stories carried by the
national daily aimed at castigating and maligning Governor Theodore
Orji and his government.
On Wednesday January 25, 2012, the newspaper in its page 3 carried a
story titled “Group Faults Orji’s Appointment of Permanent Sec”. In the
story was an alleged opposition by a faceless group called Umunneochi
Consultative Forum against the appointment of Dr. Johnson Uzuatuegwu as
permanent secretary from the council area by Governor Orji.
It is a faceless group because a member representing Umunneochi in
the State Assembly Prince IKedi Ezekwesili the next day denied the
existence of such group in the constituency. So who are the members of
the group and who is its sponsor and have provided a platform for it
to play to gallery. Their alleged opposition or protest was not that
nobody was appointed from their area as permanent secretary by the State
government, but that they do not want Uzuatuegwu to be appointed. Have
they and their sponsors forgotten that civil service has rules and
procedures?
As if that is not enough, the same national daily on Monday January
30, 2012 carried another story against the state government titled “Abia
Health Sector In Shambles-NMA”. In the story, one Dr. Godwin Iheanyi
Uzoma acclaimed chairman of Aba zone of Nigeria Medical Association
(NMA) alleged that apart from Abia State University Teaching Hospital
(ABSUTH), that there were no other specialists hospitals anywhere in the
state.
He claimed that there were only 28 doctors in the state of about
three million people and that it was only in Aba North council area that
there is a doctor. Uzoma alleged that the difference between the salary
of house officers in the Federal Medical Centre Umuahia and state
government teaching hospital in Aba is N80,000 and the difference
between the salary of a consultant in FMC and ABSUTH is N200,000 and
that is why doctors do not stay long at the latter.
Though I am not from the state, but I have seen on Nigeria Television
Authority (NTA) a new specialist and diagnostic hospital built in
Umuahia by the state government which has been now extended to Amachara
General Hospital and has been upgraded. The governor had on several
occasions made it known that his government inherited a decayed health
sector that was moribund when he assumed office. But presently, the
governor has constructed hospitals in all most all the local council
areas. If Dr. Uzoma allegation that there are only 28 doctors in the
state and it was only in Aba North that there is doctor, so where are
the other doctors? Does it mean that he is the only private or
government doctor in the whole of Aba as he would want the world to
believe? What an unethical and false allegation in attempt to paint the
state government effort in health sector in bad a light.
On the issue of disparities in the salaries of doctors as alleged by
Uzoma, it is clear to a layman that there is always a disparity in the
salaries of workers in the state and federal establishments. Comparing
the salary of a staff in Federal Medical Centre Umuahia and ABSUTH is
the highest level of hypocrisy shown by Dr. Uzoma. Even with the new
minimum wage, federal workers and their state counterpart do not earn
the same salaries and allowances, so why and how could a right thinking
person equate or compare a federal civil servant with a state civil
servant.
Besides everybody cannot work in federal establishments as being
canvassed by Uzoma and his sponsors. As a medical officer, what should
be uppermost in the mind of Uzoma and his allies is how to save life
first and not how to acquire material wealth. That is why some doctors
no longer concentrate on their job which has led to careless death of
patients.
No matter the political differences between a publisher and the state
government, such should not be allowed to affect the editorial contents
of the newspaper, rather extra efforts should be made to ensure
balance and objective reporting of events across the country without
minding whose ox is gored.
Culled from Vanguard
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