From James Azania, Lokoja, and Gbade Ogunwale, Abuja
The Kogi State government has reacted to Wednesday’s attack on the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Lokoja, saying the violence resulted from a clash between officials of the hospital, and some aggrieved relatives of patients.
The government in a statement by the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Fanwo, described the violence at the facility as unfortunate.
The statement read: “The attention of the Kogi State government has been drawn to the unfortunate scuffle between the staff of the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, and some patients’ relatives at the hospital this morning.
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“Preliminary findings revealed that the violence ensued when relations of patients in the medical facility protested against the failure of the management of the hospital to attend to them.
“Many people in the Emergency Ward were left unattended to and a mother [put to bed] at the gate of the hospital. That generated a lot of public tension in the state.
“Tension started building since yesterday (Tuesday) when patients and their relatives learnt of a plan by the medical staff to stage a protest today (Wednesday), seeking protection from Covid-19.”
Earlier reports said some sponsored thugs attacked the hospital, carting away several items in an operation lasting 30 minutes.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned the attack on the medical facility, saying that gunmen invaded the hospital, destroyed and took away documents and equipment allegedly used for data collection and management of COVID-19 in the state.
The party expressed shock over the violent attack, especially given allegations in the public space that the gunmen were sponsored by the Kogi state government.
The state government was alleged to have directed its people not to visit the medical center for their medications, following its reported disagreement with the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) on the state’s COVID-19 status.
In a statement on Wednesday by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party insisted that such an attack on a medical facility cannot be justified under any guise whatsoever.
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