The Federal Government’s 80-bed Mother and Child Specialist Hospital in Pakiotan, in the Ogbomoso North Local Government Area of Oyo State, has been vandalised by unidentified hoodlums.
The building, which includes beds, medications, laboratory equipment, and other medical supplies, was designed to function as an urban health clinic.
Sunday Dare, a former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, facilitated the project, which was finished and opened on May 27, 2023, and then given over to the Federal Ministry of Health through the University College Hospital in Ibadan.
Oba James Ojo, the Onipakiotan of Pakiotan, denounced the incident while leading reporters around the facilities on Wednesday.
He recalled that certain wires were vandalised before the inauguration and rebuilt by Dare, the former minister.
The monarch said, “The destruction of this infrastructure has become a major concern for the community and requires urgent and coordinated action.
“We must ensure that those who wilfully destroy or vandalise public property are held accountable. As the saying goes, offenders must be brought to book, or the book brought to them.
“Since the handover, nothing has been happening here. We have no access to the facility, and there’s no security.
“Recently, we noticed signs of intrusion, and when one of Dare’s aides joined us to inspect the site, we were shocked to discover that all the cables, 150 solar batteries, electrical appliances, ceiling fans, and other valuable items had been removed.”
He also stated that the community released eight plots of land for the hospital in order to deliver superior maternal and child healthcare to the residents of the ancient city and its surroundings.
“However, the facility has remained idle for more than a year after commissioning,” he bemoaned.
He, therefore, urged the ministry through UCH to either begin operations immediately or hand over the hospital to the community for competent management.
“If the hospital had been put to use, such incidents would not have happened,” he said.
Also addressing the gathering, the Chairman of Ogbomoso North Local Government, Ogunlade Gbadegesin, expressed sorrow that such a structure had been abandoned.
“So many valuable medical items have been looted, and others are at risk.
“We will engage security personnel to safeguard what remains until the hospital is finally put into use,” he promised.
