Resident doctors condemn murder of colleague, urge IGP to investigate death

The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has condemned the murder of one of its members, the late Dr. Stephen Urueye.

In a statement made available to newsmen in Ibadan, yesterday, jointly signed by the President and the Publicity Secretary of the association, Olusegun Olaopa and Kefas Breithwaise, respectively, NARD described the incident as gruesome and unfortunate, saying Urueye’s killing constituted a huge loss to the medical profession and to the country in general, especially, at a time when the health sector is bedeviled by manpower shortage.

They appealed to the Police to ensure that those found guilty of the “heinous” crime are brought to book and government at all levels to urgently address the increasing spate of insecurity and pockets of violence in different parts of the country.

The statement said: “Urueye was stabbed in front of the hospital in the evening of Thursday, April 4 by some unknown men. Medical education is a great task and lots of sacrifice to students, parents and even the nation.

“Such great investment should not be allowed to be cut off when Nigerians need the services of young professionals as this to mitigate the ominous trend in manpower provision for our health sector.

“The spate of insecurity calls to question the premium placed on human life and we wish to re-emphasise that every Nigerian citizen deserves, among other things, the guarantee of safety, whether at work places, on the street or at home.”

The association also called on the acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) to bring the perpetrators of the heinous crime to justice, adding: “We also use this medium to call on all stakeholders, including parents and the vulnerable public, to support this clarion call on the security outfits in Nigeria to ensure that the lives of the average citizens count.”

NARD urged the President Muhammadu Buhari led-administration to ensure the full implementation of the Basic Package of Health Care Funds in this year’s appropriation, noting that this would cater for free emergency services, even in the most remote locations in the country, as “this will definitely help our hospitals in providing prompt and effective emergency care to helpless citizens when the need arises.”