Wives of former and serving governors engaged in the fight against the spread of cancer among women and girls, under the aegis of First Lady Against Cancer (FLAC), have donated N10million to support the treatment of cancer patients at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.
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The visit by the Coalition, led by it’s chairman and former First Lady of Kebbi State, Dr Zainab Shinkafi, had in attendance the wife of the former governor of Oyo State, Dr Florence Ajimobi; wife of the former governor of Ogun State, Mrs Olufunsho Amosun; representative of the wife of former Ekiti State governor, Erelu Bisi Fayemi; and representative of the wife of former Kwara State governor, among others.
The first ladies, who were hosted by the wife of the Oyo State Governor, Mrs Tamunominini Makinde, in her office in Ibadan, were in the state to assess the plight of cancer patients and make donations to relieve the patients of their financial burden.
In her address, Mrs Makinde thanked FLAC for considering the state for the support, and assured them that whatever donations they make would be used effectively, while lamenting that cancer had become a deadly disease and that all hands must be on deck to get rid of the disease.
She urged people, particularly women, to get vaccinated against cancer, always go for routine cancer check and not wait till it gets to stage two or three in their body.
“As we all know that October is Cancer Awareness Month, let’s pay attention to our health, let’s be vaccinated and do the needful to get rid of cancer,” Makinde said.
Speaking during a courtesy visit to the management of UCH, the FLAC Chairman, Mrs Shinkaffi, disclosed that the purpose of the coalition was to increase awareness and advocacy on cancer and render necessary assistance to it’s patients, saying the choice of cancer patients at UCH was delibrate, considering the status of the hospital in delivering adequate healthcare to Nigerians.
In his remark, the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of UCH, Prof. Jesse Otegbayo, commended the gesture of FLAC, which he said was not just encouraging, but also commendable, in the choice of UCH for the collaboration, stating that government alone can not provide all the needs of the hospital.
He noted, “I sincerely appreciate the commitment of the FLAC towards supporting our cancer patients in the hospital as well as your advocacy for improved access to cancer care services. This effort will remain indelible in the minds of those who will benefit from your kind gestures. It will also be a great relief to the hospital.”
Otegbayo revealed that the donation would reduce the burden on the Internally Generated Revenue of the hospital that was already overstretched and would also reduce the cancer burden in Nigeria.
“We want to appreciate the support of the Federal Government in making our systems grow, and we appeal to you, the first ladies (former and present) to use your good offices to solicit assistance for the hospital. You can endow wards and projects, and such will be named after you, and it becomes a legacy you will be proud of,” the CMD appealed.
Also speaking, ex-First Lady Florence Ajimobi, whose foundation, Access to Basic Care (ABC) Foundation, is a member of the partner NGO facilitating the resources to the state, appealled to parents not to listen to negative insinuations about the HPV vaccine for young girls as it would not harm them, but rather help reduce the rate of the spread of cancer among girls and women.
She stated, “My Foundation, ABC, has been at the forefront in Oyo State over the past eleven years. For me, this is something I am passionate about, to put a smile on people’s faces and save as many as we can. If we educate people and create awareness for them, then I think we will be able to strike out new patients of cancer.
“Because I have been hearing some wrong insinuations that the HPV vaccine will not make the girls get pregnant when they want, that’s not true. Please, it is very important, let them take the vaccine, the government is giving it free to everybody. So, please go to the different health centers and have the vaccine,” Ajimobi pleaded.
She promised that her foundation, ABC, would partner with the Oyo State Government so that children from 10 to 13years could take the vaccine, adding that the only way to strike out cancer is early detection.
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