As Nigeria clocks 52 years of nationhood, traditional Medicine Practitioners under the auspices of National Association of Nigeria Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP) has urged the ruling class to lay a good foundation in medicine for the future.
The NANTMP spoke through its Rivers State Branch Chairman, Chief Dr. Eugene Aworiabo, scored the country low in the area of including fully the use of traditional healing into its medicare system of curing certain ailments which have proved difficult for the orthodox healing.
Chief Aworiabo has the notion that “it has been indeed a sad story of lamentations in all sides” and urged Nigerian leaders to begin to set a new agenda in national health building.
He explained to his members during NANTMP quarterly general meeting, said traditional medicine practitioners are not comfortable with the country’s performance in the health care sector as the ruling class has totally excluded the natural medicine given by God through leaves and herbs.
The chairman gave typical example where the outgone military Governor, Sam Ewang, set up the traditional medicine in the state board only to be disbanded by civilian government.
“The state government does not want to see eye to eye with the union leaders nor inviting them for a discussion. The government within the past years only encourage tradomedicine sellers outside the state to exhibit and make their money without confirming the efficacy and standardization of the medicines so sold to the general public,” Aworiabo stated.
Furthermore, Aworiabo called on Nigerian government to demand for concepts which would guarantee a future for generations of the citizens.
Speaking on areas the country failed, he said “there had been a persistent and utter breach of the National Drug policy protocols aided by extreme benevolence of government to infiltrators in the profession.”
There can be no better health care in the country until traditional medicine is accepted and used along with orthodox medicine, he emphasized. ###
Senibo Dr. A. A. Cookey
