Renal Failure Patients’ Prayer And The Govt Offering

By Odimegwu Onwumere

A reaction by one Rev. Agamugoro Peters to my recent article titled “Fashola and The Limb Corrective Surgery” states thus: “The gesture of Governor Fashola is most laudable, a great example for leaders and all who are financially better than others. However, I have my fears about things as these: the Nigerian factor has made much life-improving projects end up in the refuse bins of many leaders in the past. Once the excitements of such projects die down and popularity earned, they throw away such initiatives. We are also aware of how aides and persons assigned by many benefactors to ensure their initiatives are successful, introduce strangulating bottlenecks to enrich themselves to the detriment of the goals of the initiators.”

Much as people with renal failure continue to increase in Nigeria, the government’s reaction to such cases is dwindling. Why? How on earth can a government that professes democracy would allow its citizens undergo one form of ailment or another without a support? Even before government comes to the assistance of such patients, the person must have passed through a deal or ordeal and the hope of surviving is many a time a rare chance.

We watched our own and only Sunny Okosuns gnashed teeth and passed to glory of a colon cancer- related ailment in a country he held so dear like his own baby without any help from the government. Is it not a shame that our government allowed a celebrity like Okosuns to wash his linen in the public where he was begging for alms before help came his way through an Indian who footed his medical bills abroad?

But one thing is obvious. Perhaps, Okosuns would not have died if urgent attention was given him when he was making the numerous calls for medical assistance to travel overseas. However, Okosuns would have been considered even lucky to have got a person who came to his support because he was a star. What about the numerous Nigerians going through one form of ailment or another that everyone seems to ignore because they are no Okosuns.

That reminds one of the many lunatics in our streets. Suffix it that we are living with lunatics, and how they are invariably reflect what we are, especially in the case of those in power who carry so much looted money on their persons as the lunatics dirty shreds on themselves. Are we not living with lunatics and what stops those in authority from working hard to stop their number, especially when one remembers that these people were once our beloved brothers and sisters?

Much as we desire to see a country with heaven-like streets one day, it will be wrong to see our demented citizens being left to themselves – to live or die of their ailments anytime. And I wonder who would remain to live in the NEW Nigeria if our people are left to die at every slight touch of the wicked hand of an ailment. And perhaps we do not know: ailment of any kind is a visa to death.

Travelling abroad for treatment of any sickness we develop here is wrong. The Nigerian government has a duty to its citizens. We must overhaul our health sector, not just tinkering it here and there because pumping money into the sector without thorough checks would only make some good-for-nothing Nigerians occupying positions in that sector to grow fat to the detriment of the people (local people) it is meant to serve.

The Nigerian government should build hospitals and equip them. Our medical practitioners are left to be lazy without good equipment. The government must slash medical bills for kidney failure patients, since it is such a serious case. And there should be all-quick attendance to patients with kidney failures. This approach has to be enforced. People are dying unsung in Nigeria, too many. And who cares?

Onwumere wrote from Port Harcourt, Rivers State

Saving Nigerian Tenants From Shylock Landlords

By Marufh Bello

THIS may be an exemplary account of a Nigerian plebeian who has witnessed the racketeering and frustration involved in the acquisition of accommodation in major cities in Nigeria, especially Ibadan. In today’s Nigeria, according to the available statistics, about 75-85 per cent are located in the web of rural dwellers, downtrodden, less-privileged or under-privileged, or the poor, who can be summarily addressed as “commoners’. The question now is: how many people in this stratum can afford to build houses of their own? Asking this question is only a mere intellectual exercise as far as poor economic status spread across this group and inflation (rising cost(s) of usables, for instance, building materials), are concerned. It would be difficult, if not impossible to build a house for oneself. Besides, if the economy is well planned, must any individual privately own a house?

With reality of inability to have a house of his own in ten years even when he is employed but not gainfully as his counterparts in oil, telecommunication industries, privileged firms or other mega multinational companies with a conglomerate standing, he goes for a house rent —either a 1-room apartment, 2 or 3-bedroom flat, bungalow (detachable or undetachable), or duplex depending on his purchasing ability. These types of hired houses also have their categories depending on the built-in facilities. In fairness to the Nigerian humanity, many of them cannot afford the money to acquire them; those that can afford them even groan. This is not unconnected with the rent and total charges placed on these properties. From experience, it has been discovered that when you acquire accommodation direct through the owner of the house, the complaint of the would-be tenant, in terms of rent bill, is less, when agents are involved, the complaint is much higher as he is made to pay double, or even more, of the rent —“total package,” as the agents usually tag it.

A substandard room in areas like Challenge, Moshood Abiola Way (Ring Road), Imalefalafia, Oke-Bola, Oke-Ado, even Olorunsogo, Akanran Road, all in Ibadan is let out between N1,000-N1,500 per month without the agent’s charges (agreement fee, caution fee, etc). All these fees put together can even send one to the grave! Hear this testament: “I have seen where a house agent was charging 50% of the house rent as his commission. I have seen scores of landlords (house owners?) who annually increase the rent without any justification that will bring or promise the tenants more comfort —no renovation of the building built some 20/30 years ago, yet he is wickedly determined to increase the house rent. Based on experiences, when a tenant protests against such unjustifiable increase, the next action is to issue ‘quit notice’ or ‘termination of tenancy’ to the tenant. By this act, several Nigerian hoi polloi are being denied comfortable life existence more and more because it is only the rich who can often afford the bills, forcing the masses to opt for slums.”

These days, it appears the house owners have signed a ‘life agreement’ with the agents. This conclusion is informed because in most places today in Ibadan, if you think you can get or access accommodation without these agents, you are likely to wander about hopelessly and endlessly. Another habit common with these agents is that before they agree to secure accommodation for you, one would first pay a ‘consultation fee’ of at least N500; but worse still, when you pay the fee, they may not have any specific properties at hand, they start contacting their counterparts in the business and if you are lucky, one is got for you, you are rest assured it will never be your choice. Mr. Hon. Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, sir, several Nigerians read you on the pages of the Saturday Tribune, s of 17 May 2008 and the New Nigeria of 20 instant, concerning ‘landlord-tenant relationship’ in Nigeria, however, the above is to reveal to you that there are more to address (legislate) on this issue.

Nevertheless, we salute your effort and appreciate your sensitivity to one of the many throes facing the Nigerian majority; we still hope that it will not be the usual traditional talk, talk which ends where and when it is stated and not backed up with action.

Marufh Bello is with Saturday Tribune