How doctors in Gwagwalada Hospital pronounced Mailafia dead while wife still feel husband’s pulse – MBF

Members of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) on Sunday decried the attitude of the Nigerian doctors at the Gwagwalada National Hospital, Abuja, leading to the sudden death of a member of the Forum and former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Obadiah Mailafia. The Forum alleged that the doctors at the National Hospital, Gwagwalada, FCT, pronounced Mailafia dead even while the wife could still feel the pulse of her husband, resisting appeals to revive the deceased.

The Middle Belt Forum also protested that the Nigerian doctors at the Gwagwalada hospital refused to administer medical treatment to Mailafia even at the critical moment, further countering the efforts of the foreign medical consultants that were at the hospital to provide support.

The MBF in a statement on Sunday by the National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Isuwa Dogo, indicated that the death of the former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital Gwagwalada, Abuja, Sunday morning was a great shock to the Forum. Dogo remarked that “as someone who relentlessly participated in the activities of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), his untimely death has dealt a deadly blow on ethnic nationalities of not only the Middle Belt but the country at large.”

The MBF noted that various inquiries from Nigerians over the circumstances of the death of Mailafia, indicated that the deceased would have survived if he was given medical attention on arrival at the National Hospital, Gwagwalada.

The Forum narrated that Dr. Mailafia arrived Abuja last Sunday 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 shabbily treated.

“It took the intervention of a senior medic who immediately placed him on oxygen and admitted him,” MBF national Publicity Secretary narrated.
According to the Forum “Dr. Mailafia’s 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 Mailafia.”

The MBF National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Isuwa Dogo, stated that after a few hours of treatment, the EHA Clinics told the wife that it was expedient to transfer the deceased to Gwagwalada on the excuse that the clinic was not fully equipped to handle the case.

The Mailafia’s wife had opposed the decision,  insisting that she was opposed to the idea of taking her husband to Gwagwalada. The wife only succumbed when the consultant assured her that nothing bad would happen to her husband.

Dr. Mailafia was then transferred on Saturday to Gwagwalada.

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On arrival, the MBF noted, the name of the doctor who was scheduled to attend to Mailafia was not on duty. The Forum lamented that “even when an attempt was made by foreign health consultants to save the situation, the doctor on duty got angry and said he was not obligated to listen to any foreign consultants that had been brought into the matter with the sole purpose of ensuring nothing  goes wrong.”
Mailafia’s wife was later told to pay a deposit of N600′,000 for medical treatment “even when it was a referral case, with accruing medical bill to be settled by the CBN,” MBF stated.

It was disclosed that at a point, Mailafia complained of breathing problems and pleaded with the doctors to place him in a ventilator. “The doctors flatly refused,” MBF declared.
The MBF National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Isuwa Dogo, noted that even after the doctors declared Mailafia dead, foreign consultants who were brought into the matter through Dr Mailafia’s son that lives overseas, had requested a family member who is a medical professional, and the father’s wife, to put pressure on the chest of Mailafia for  resuscitation and, thereafter place him on a life support.

The doctors at the Gwagwalada hospital were said to have refused all entreaties by the family members of Mailafia to follow the advice of the foreign consultants, insisting that they have already pronounced him dead.

MBF decried that even when Mailafia’s wife could feel the pulse of her husband, the doctor flatly declared there was nothing they could do since they had already pronounced him dead.
The Middle Belt Forum in the statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Isuwa Dogo, declared: “while the above narration sums up the circumstances under which Dr. Mailafia died, we still  await the result of the actual cause of his death.”

The MBF highlighted: “As a nationalist and patriot that he was, Dr. Mailafia was completely dedicated to the emancipation of ethnic nationalities from the clutches of oppression.

“The economist was never afraid to speak truth to power just as he remained committed to the enthronement of justice and equity to all citizens across ethnic and religious divides.
“In the twilight of his life, this consummate technocrat and global scholar of repute beamed his searchlight on the raging insecurity ravaging our country.

“He expressed regrets over the government’s incapacity to rein in the activities of insurgents and criminal groups terrorizing the nation.

“As a former presidential candidate in the 2019 poll, Dr. Mailafia sought to deploy politics to bring about the dream he had for his country. Even after he lost the election, he never let down the bar in demanding fair treatment for all Nigerians.”

The Middle Belt Forum recalled the patriotic zeal of Mailafia in standing up for truth and justice.

“He was never a letdown in being at the forefront of showing the way for national greatness as he was willing to lay down his life for Nigeria,” the MBF noted.

The National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Isuwa Dogo, further declared: “The Forum is inspired by his altruistic disposition and contributions to national development.

“We remain proud of his footprints on the political, economic and social sands of our nation.
“In this period of grief, we extend our sympathy to his immediate family members and pray to the Almighty God to grant each and every one of them the fortitude to bear the pain of this irreparable loss.”

The MBF maintained that the death of Dr. Mailafia on Sunday represented a dark day for not only the Middle Belt but also for all citizens  who yearn for a new dawn for justice in Nigeria.

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