Minister canvasses medical support for police

The Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Maigari Dingyadi, has solicited medical support for personnel of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and their children  from the  Doctors without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres to enable them to discharge their duty efficiently. 

Dingyadi made the appeal during a courtesy visit by Doctors Without Boarders led by  the Head of Mission in Nigeria, Mr. Syed Shaukat Muttaqi, to the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, Friday.

Head, Press and Public Relations, Bolaji O. Kazeem, in a press statement in Abuja, said: “The minister stated that police are part of the society and they are vulnerable people in the country which had led to the loss of lives of officers in the course of protecting the citizens thereby need the support of everybody including Doctors without Borders.

“I believe that you are aware that the police are one of the most vulnerable security services in the country. We have lost so many and many officers had been affected with injury, as partners in progress, we do hope you can extend some of the services to police hospitals in the country.”

He said the minister appreciated the organisation for promoting local content through the employment of over 90 per cent of Nigerians thereby “invariably, supporting the Federal government in the area of employment.”

Speaking earlier, Dr. Tirima, stated that the group has been around since 1996, rendering medical support to all the geopolitical zones of the country.

The leader of the delegation noted that N17.7 billion has been expended by the group on humanitarian services to vulnerable people in the country.

Simba enumerated some of the group activities to include free medical services to paediatrics; maternity interventions; primary health care for IDPs; medical care for laser fever patients; provision of clinical equipment to some hospitals; as well as food and nutritional support.

He said the group also provides unflinching support to the ministry of health through the provision of response services especially during the covid-19 outbreak.