MEDICAL MALPRACTICE: TENSION AS FG ALLEGEDLY APPOINTS CMD FOR FMC JALINGO BASED ON NEPOTISM

Secret Reporters

The field of medicine is seen as fragile hence should be manned by individuals who have proven to be excellent in academics and medical practice. This belief, however, seems to have been sacrificed on the altar of nepotism and favouritism in Nigeria especially at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) Jalingo.

Information available to SecretReporters reveals that following the expiration of the tenure of the erstwhile Chief Medical Director (CMD) Dr Wiza Inusa in 2019, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) in a bid to fill the vacant position in the facility, constituted a committee which carried out a thorough interview of eligible doctors qualified to be appointed. The committee had Dr Nkami Danjuma, Dr Aisha Adamu, Dr Dangana Iliya Attah and Dr Rimande Ubandoma interviewed.

It was gathered that, Dr Dangana Iliya Attah who is said to be the Ag. MD topped the interview scoring chart with about 83.27%, Aisha Adamu 67.54%, while Dr Nkami Danjuma and Dr Rimande Ubandoma scored 33.04% and 52.88% respectively.

Holding merit as a core requirement for the top job, the committee recommended Dangana Iliya Attah to the office of the Secretary-General of the Federation (SGF) for onward transmission to the Federal Government for his appointment as the CMD based on merit as he was obviously the most qualified amongst the applicants for the job having scored the highest in the interview with years of experience as icing.

However, while the medical community awaited the declaration of Iliya Attah as the CMD, they were shocked to discover through various social media platforms, information purporting that Dr Aisha Shehu Adamu who scored 67.54% has been appointed CMD of the state’s FMC by the Muhammadu Buhari’s led administration.

In what a source described as a script aimed at perpetually keeping the leadership of the Federal Medical Centre in Northern Taraba, it was gathered that the Federal Medical Centre Jalingo, has been under the leadership of various Medical Directors from the Northern Senatorial Zone for sixteen (16) years with Dr Balasa Idris serving from 2003 to 2011 while Dr Wiza Inusa served between 2011 to 2019, both from the same ethnic group of Wurukum of Karim Lamido LGA in Northern Senatorial Zone of Taraba State following a zoning process based on merit.

Similarly, in a petition written by the Coalition of Southern Taraba Indigenous Groups protesting the appointment of Dr Aisha Shehu Adamu from Taraba North as the new CMD of FMC Jalingo, they described the choice of Dr Aisha Adamu as a violation of federal character principle, injustice and a compromise of merit.

Shuaibu Shidi and 24 others who signed on behalf of the coalition stated that the current Ag. MD of FMC Jalingo, Dr Dangana Iliya Attah, who hails from Taraba South and has served as the Head of Clinical Services for years with an excellent pedigree, having scored the highest from the interview conducted by Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) for applicants for the advertised position should be appointed as the CMD based on merit and not Aisha Adamu.

“The profession holds merit in high esteem and the Federal Character Principle recommends the rotation of the posts within deserving zones in the state, thus necessitating the appointment of the right candidates.

“We know that the Federal Character Principle prohibits sacrificing merit on the altar of zoning, the first candidate from Ussa LGA in Southern Senatorial zone came first by a wide margin in addition to the fact that the Southern zone is long overdue to represent us in that capacity only for the position to be purportedly given to the second candidate who is from the Northern Senatorial zone again. In the light of the above, we are convinced that the approving authority was misled to act contrary to the Federal Character Principle which is a constitutional matter,” the group added.

Although no official announcement of the appointment has been made by the Federal government, the group called on relevant authorities to set up a high-powered committee to look into the matter to ensure that the right thing is done.