The Minister of Health, Dr. Alhassan
Khaliru, has been absent from his office at the Federal Ministry of
Health for some weeks even though he is not on official leave.
Ahead of
May 29 hand over date, there is a circular from the Head of Service of the
Federation cancelling all leave for top Federal Government functionaries.
Meanwhile,
there is global concern over rising cases of heart diseases in children.
Concerned by the development, the World Health Organisation has stressed the
urgent need to strengthen health services to tackle Rheumatic Heart Disease
(RHD), a neglected and preventable disease in children.
At the
Federal Secretariat building housing the Federal Ministry of Health in Abuja,
the initial hushed whispers on Dr. Khaliru’s whereabouts have turned loud. The
question asked by the workers is, “where is the minister?” “Why hasn’t anybody
seen him for weeks now?”
Apart
from being absent at public functions at the Ministry, he has also not been
regular at the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting including the one held
on Wednesday.
The
Guardian News reported that Khaliru is also absent at the on-going World Health
Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.
The World Health Assembly is attended by delegates from World Health Organisation (WHO) member states as well as representatives from many agencies, organisations, foundations and other groups that contribute to improving public health. Member states approve resolutions in committee before formally adopting them in the plenary session at the end of the Assembly.
Minister
of State for Health, Fidelis Nwankwo, an engineer, has been in charge of the
ministry and its activities for some weeks now. He is leading Nigeria’s
delegation to the ongoing World Health Assembly.
Officials
of the Ministry were however unwilling to speak on the whereabouts of the
minister as at the time of going to press.
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