Remove Dominic Ukpong Within Seven Days - FoCEHRaDA Tells Gov Udom

By UbongAbasi Ise 

The Foundation for Civic Education, Human Rights and Development Advancement, FoCEHRaDA, has stoked up fire for the sack of Dr. Dominic Ukpong as the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Health within seven days.

In a letter addressed to Governor Udom Emmanuel and signed by FoCEHRaDA's Executive Director, Barr. Clifford Thomas,  the human rights body called on the state governor to relieve Dr. Ukpong of his job within seven days beginning from Monday 27th April 2020 to save Akwa Ibom people from disaster.

 The group alleged that the actions of Dr. Ukpong has fetched the state unfavorable statistics on health crisis in the country.

 FoCEHuRaDA accused the health commissioner of mismanaging the state's health sector,  including creating tension amongst the health workers.

"The implication of his present action, and preceding actions which has made Akwa Ibom State to fare badly in other areas where peer review is required like in the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria and TB statistics, and gross mismanagement of the health sector in the State, health workers cannot work with him again freely, and the health sector might become comatose," the letter reads.

FoCEHRaDA said if not for the invention of the state governor, the commissioner's face-off with the members of Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, would have caused the health workers to go on strike in this critical time of Covid-19 pandemic.

"His sense of superiority complex and belligerent disposition, sparked off a dispute with health workers in the State; leading to a near-downing of tools by health workers in this trying times. It took your intervention, Your Excellency, for this matter to be resolved; and the health workers conceded to your utmost appeal to reason," said the group.

The human rights body frowned at Dr. Dominic Ukpong's alleged attempt to slow down the pace of Covid-19 testing in the state for fear of explosive record of confirmed cases.

According to the letter, "the Health Commissioner is quoted to have expressed anger that Cross River State has not recorded any COVID-19 case, and queried why Akwa Ibom State should be sending samples when Cross River State has not sent samples. this is in clear contradistinction with the earlier position of the Akwa Ibom State Government that it would commence aggressive testing through sample collections. This was an official position of the government. Why the covert and overt fight against this policy of government?"to

On Dr. Aniekeme Uwah's redeployment from the state epidemiology department as a result of his sending 31 of the Covid-19 samples taken from suspected cases as against the 10 that the commissioner wanted sent,  FoCEHRaDA queried why Dr. Dominic Ukpong later celebrated the results after Initial panic, questioning if the removal of Uwah was right in the circumstance.

"When the Commissioner announced the results of the test with excitement, that, 30 out of the 31 samples proved negative, what then was the panic about?

"Would His Excellency truly say that the removal of Dr. Uwah as the State Epidemiologist was right in the circumstance?" the letter queried.

The human rights body said for the fact that the Akwa Ibom state branch of MNA has passed vote-of-no-confidence on Mr. Ukpong as the Commissioner for Health, it is imperative that the governor remove him from office.

The group further called on Mr. Udom Emmanuel to replace Ukpong with somebody who "understands the terrain of the health sector of Akwa Ibom State beyond political party lines."

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