The Lagos State Advocacy Team on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (ATM) has called on communities in Ejirin area of Epe Local Government Area of Lagos, to take greater ownership of their Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) rather than waiting solely on government intervention.
The appeal was made during an advocacy visit led by the Lagos State Coordinator of the TB Network and the team lead for ATM coordinators, Mrs. Meg Aipoh.
The ATM initiative is coordinated by three civil society coalitions known as the ATM Networks: the Civil Society in Malaria Control, Immunisation and Nutrition (ACOMIN), the Tuberculosis (TB) Network, and the Network of People Living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN).
Supported by the Global Fund, the project is being implemented across 21 states in Nigeria, including Lagos, to strengthen health systems and improve the country’s response to HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
Aipoh urged community leaders to take ownership of primary healthcare centres (PHCs) in their communities to ensure sustainability and better service delivery.
Aipoh further explained that the project is currently being implemented in five Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state, with three community-based organisations (CBOs) working in each LGA to drive grassroots impact.
According to Aipoh, while addressing the Adetoyese Elejinrin of Ejirin Kingdom, Oba Rafiu Ishola Babatunde Balogun and some of his kinsmen and women, said that the primary goal of the intervention is to strengthen PHCs and encourage active participation of community members in identifying and solving challenges facing the facilities.
“The project is basically to strengthen the primary health centres in Lagos State and to ensure community members take ownership. The government cannot do everything. Government can build, but maintenance often becomes a problem. That is why we are involving the communities to take ownership and get them engaged in resolving issues identified in their PHCs,” she said.
She noted that over the years, poor maintenance culture has affected the functionality of PHCs, leading to gaps in healthcare delivery.
The new strategy, she said, seeks to build accountability, awareness, and responsibility at the community level to ensure that facilities are not abandoned or neglected.
The State Coordinator stressed that when communities become proactive in maintaining their healthcare centres, it not only ensures the centres remain functional but also reduces the burden on the government.
Reacting, Oba Balogun raised the alarm over what he described as decades of abandonment, lamenting that successive governments at the federal, state, and local levels have failed to bring meaningful development to his community.
The monarch lamented that since the creation of Lagos State in 1967, the community has not felt the impact of government in any meaningful way.
“Between 1967 and now, there is no government presence of any type in Ejirin, not even a local government presence. The community has no medical care, no social services, nothing at all,” Oba Balogun said.
The traditional ruler revealed that he personally shoulders the responsibility of providing water for his people, spending huge amounts to pump borehole water for community use.
“I am the one giving water to my community. I spend a lot of money to pump the borehole just to make sure people have water to drink. The condition is bad. What we want is for governments at all levels to come and develop Ejirin,” he added.
The Ekerin of Ejinrin, Chief Lateef Babatunde Akinyemi, recalled that the only government intervention the community ever experienced was a water scheme initiated during the second term of former Lagos governor, Bola Tinubu. However, the scheme collapsed when the supply of diesel was discontinued, leaving the community without access to clean water.
The Ejirin Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC), meant to cater for the health needs of residents, is also in a deplorable state.
Investigations revealed that the PHC has no midwife, no comfortable chairs for health workers, and is housed in a dilapidated building with broken ceilings.
The only functional equipment is a solar-powered refrigerator provided by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) for vaccine preservation.
Currently, the PHC is manned by just two nurses, two community health workers, one environmental officer, a health attendant, and a pharmacy technician — grossly inadequate for the population it is meant to serve.
Oba Balogun stressed that Ejirin people are not asking for luxury but for the essentials that every Nigerian community deserves.
“We need water. We need functional healthcare. We need social services. Government should not forget us,” he pleaded.
According to the State Programme Officer for Civil Society for the eradication of TB Network in Nigeria on the C19RM project, Mr. Taiwo Adakan, the visit was prompted by challenges identified at the PHC by community-based organisations (CBOs) implementing the C19RM project in Ejirin community.
These challenges, he said, ranged from poor awareness and misconceptions about healthcare services to weak community participation in sustaining PHC infrastructure.
“Money meant for primary health centres sometimes gets misused because communities remain silent. By creating awareness, we are helping residents to demand accountability from the government and ensure facilities work for them,” he added.
During the visit to Oloritun in the Erepoto area of Epe, the team identified additional concerns, including poor lighting at PHCs, lack of burglary-proof security for facilities, and cases of gender-based violence (GBV).
The programme officer emphasised that the project is not only about health service delivery but also about strengthening community systems.
“Our goal is to empower communities to protect their PHCs, demand accountability, and contribute resources where necessary. That is how we can achieve lasting impact,” he said.
In response, a community leader in Oloritun, Chief Arijaya, appealed to the government and stakeholders to come to the aid of the Orepoto Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC), which he said is in urgent need of support to meet the health needs of its residents.
“I want to call on my people in the community and relevant authorities to support this programme so that we can progress in improving the centre. The government cannot do it alone. The PHC is here for us, but it needs our contributions and attention to grow,” he said.
