Residents of the Dutsun community in Mokwa Local Council of Niger State have appealed to the state and LGA to urgently rehabilitate the community’s only general hospital, which they said has been neglected for years.

The District Head of Dutsun, Alhaji Mohammad Abubakar Majin, made the appeal in a “Save Our Soul” letter addressed to the Niger State Government and Mokwa LGA and made available to journalists in Minna.

Majin said the hospital, established in 2008 by the administration of former Governor Abdulkadir Kure, had received little or no attention from successive administrations, leaving the facility in a deplorable condition.

According to him, the hospital serves not only residents of Dutsun but also patients from communities across the River Niger and parts of neighbouring Kwara State.

He said the prolonged neglect had placed an enormous burden on residents, particularly those who cannot afford to travel long distances for medical treatment.

“Despite several complaints and appeals by the community to various authorities, nothing meaningful has been done to address the situation,” Majin said.

He explained that members of the community, particularly youths and parents, had made efforts to keep the facility functioning despite their limited financial resources.

He recalled that residents had previously contributed money and labour to repair parts of the hospital, including its roof, when government intervention was not forthcoming.

Majin said Mokwa LGA had, about three months ago, promised to send a delegation to assess the extent of the damage and determine what was required for rehabilitation, but the visit had yet to take place.

He described the continued neglect as a major setback to healthcare delivery in the community and urged the authorities to act before the situation deteriorates further.

A former councillor representing Dutsun Ward, Mohammed Kolo Dutsun, also lamented the condition of the facility, saying years of neglect by both the state and local governments had rendered it largely uninhabitable.

“Presently, if you visit the hospital, you will agree with me that it appears as if no government is in existence here,” he said.

Kolo said the roof had been blown off for years, while cracks had appeared on the walls, raising concerns about the safety of the building.

He added that parts of the floor were waterlogged, while the ceilings and windows were also falling apart.

According to him, the hospital has no adequate beddings or mattresses and is currently being managed by only two nurses, who provide skeletal services in the absence of a medical doctor.

He called for the total rehabilitation and proper equipping of the hospital, stressing that restoring the facility would ease the suffering of residents who currently have to travel long distances to access medical care.

The community leaders appealed to the Niger State Government and Mokwa Local Council to urgently intervene by rehabilitating the building, providing medical equipment, beds and other essential facilities, as well as deploying qualified medical personnel to the hospital.