Elochukwu Benjamin
Awka
The Anambra State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Afam Obidike, has dismissed allegations made in a viral podcast about the condition of the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Amaku- Awka, describing the claims as misleading and inconsistent with the hospital’s present realities.
A former staff of the hospital had on the podcast hosted by a content creator, Chijioke Igwendu, popularly known as ‘Yan Baba’, accused the state government of paying lip service to the needs of the hospital, alleging that the hospital was a death centre.
The former staff also alleged that workers in the hospital were the worst paid in the country, claiming that the hospital was ‘smelly’.
In response to the claims, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr Obidike, and the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr Maureen Umeakuewulu, on Friday, invited the podcast host, Yan Baba, and journalists on an inspection tour of the teaching hospital to independently verify the allegations.
The inspection covered key sections of the hospital, including the emergency unit, trauma centre, wards, operating theatres, oxygen plant, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), diagnostic units and the hospital environment.
Addressing media people afterwards, Dr Obidike explained that the decision to organise the tour followed the circulation of the podcast, stressing that the true state of the facility should be established through firsthand assessment rather than social media narratives.
According to the Commissioner, allegations that the hospital had a dilapidated entrance, an unclean environment and non-functional critical facilities were disproved during the visit.
“Everyone who participated in the inspection has seen that those claims do not reflect the current reality at AMAKU,” he said.
Obidike highlighted ongoing improvements at the hospital, including the availability of multiple ECG machines, a 64-slice CT scanner, piped oxygen systems, modern operating theatres and other advanced medical equipment.
He disclosed that Governor Chukwuma Soludo recently approved the procurement of medical equipment worth over ₦500 million for the facility as part of broader investments in the state’s healthcare system.
He added that the Soludo administration has continued to recruit health workers, strengthen telemedicine services and improve healthcare infrastructure across the state.
The Commissioner further noted that Anambra has emerged as one of Nigeria’s top-performing states in primary healthcare, winning the National Primary Healthcare Leadership Challenge Fund Award twice in the last three years and attracting about $1.6 million in performance-based grants.
He also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to free antenatal care and delivery services, improved welfare for health workers and the establishment of the University of Medical Sciences and Technology to tackle manpower shortages.
Speaking during the inspection, the Chief Medical Director of COOUTH, Dr. Umeakuewulu, said the exercise was intended to give the public an opportunity to verify the hospital’s condition rather than rely on reports circulating online.
She explained that the hospital has maintained a clean environment through regular sanitation, grass clearing and fumigation despite the rainy season, adding that the unscheduled nature of the visit demonstrated that no special preparations were made before the arrival of the inspection team.
Umeakuewulu also highlighted ongoing reforms at the hospital, including the digitisation of patients’ records with barcode technology, facility-wide Wi-Fi and an electronic payment system managed by an independent service provider, which she said has eliminated cash transactions and enhanced transparency.
“COOUTH has continued to witness increased patronage, particularly during the ongoing free cervical, breast and prostate cancer screening programme organised to commemorate the birthdays of Governor Soludo and the First Lady, Dr. Nonye Soludo,” she said.
Umeakuewulu expressed concerns that a medical doctor would be involved in peddling misinformation about a system he once worked in, noting that the concerns should be for him, having travelled outside the shores of the country, to look at how he can support the system back home to be better.
The CMD insisted that with the huge investments the governor is making in the teaching hospital, it has the potential to become the best in various healthcare services in the country in the near future.
Meanwhile, a critical analysis of the medical doctor’s comments in the viral podcast showed that his views were largely based on his experiences while working at the hospital years ago and reflected challenges that existed at the time.
In a message to the Commissioner, he acknowledged that many of the issues he raised had since been addressed by the Soludo administration through the renovation of the hospital following the governor’s 2023 visit, improved remuneration for healthcare workers, payment of hazard allowances, establishment of the Medical Response Team Fund (MRTF) and the development of the trauma centre.
He explained that the podcast was intended to chronicle the hospital’s evolution, highlighting both past deficiencies and subsequent government interventions. According to him, excerpts circulating online did not adequately reflect the portions of the interview where he commended the government’s efforts.
Responding to the clarification, Dr. Obidike welcomed the explanation but insisted that the hospital should be judged by its current state rather than past challenges.
He reiterated the state government’s commitment to transforming the teaching hospital into a centre of excellence and called on Nigerian medical professionals in the diaspora to support the state’s healthcare sector through research, training, telemedicine and other collaborative initiatives.
