The Plateau State House of Assembly Standing Committee on Health has advised government Ministries, Departments and agencies to make their budgets based on needs and avoid the pattern of copying previous budget and pasting it for the next fiscal year.
The House Committee on Health, gave the advice when they paid a familiarization visit to some health agencies in Jos recently.
Speaking on the essence of the visit, chairman of the committee, who is the member representing Pankshin South, Hon. Salome Wanglek, explained that as new lawmakers and new committee, they felt it is important to visit the government health MDAs under their supervision to familiarize and seek synergy with management of the organizations for optimal performances.
She noted that the visit afforded them an ample opportunity to interact with heads of the organizations, listen to their challenges and assured them of legislative intervention to mitigate in challenges and help them deliver on their mandate to serve the citizens well.
On his part, deputy chairman of the committee and member representing Quanpan South, Hon. Cornelius Doeyok while commending the management of the agencies visited, counseled them on the need to tailor their budgets on basic needs and make a realistic budget to actualize their target.
“Stop copy and paste budget where every year you just pick the previous budget and make some minor changes where you will see budget for computers, papers, furnitures and so on, year in year out”.He warned.
While receiving the committee, Director General of the Plateau State Contributory Health Emergency Management Agency, PLASCHEMA, Dr. Agabus Manasseh, who was represented by the Director, Health Services and Quality Control, Pharmacy David Wuyep, took time and explained to them the operation of the agency, successes and their challenges.
Among the successes was the enrollment of more than Seventy thousand (70,000) beneficiaries into the scheme. On some of their challenges, they appealed to the lawmakers to review the law establishing the agency to address some grey areas, the need for permanent office, operational Vehicles and the remittance of the deductions of benefitting civil servants to the agency.
At the Plateau State Primary Healthcare Development Board, the Executive Secretary, Dr. Raymond Juryit informed the committee on shortage of man power across the 1034 primary healthcare facilities in the state as many of them are retired, but assured them of plans to engage some volunteers and also employ more staff.
Dr. Juryit noted that in order to achieve good primary healthcare services, every hand must be on desk and called for collaboration to achieve quality health care in the state. He renewed the call on women to avail themselves for antenatal service as according to him, 900 out of every 100,000 women die during childbirth in Plateau State.
The committee were also at the Plateau State Hospital Management Board and were received by the acting Chief Medical Director, Dr. Benjamin Sumi who listed their challenges to include shortage of doctors across the secondary healthcare center in the state, lack of operational Vehicles and the need to complete the 3 General Hospitals in Mabudi, Langtang South, Kanke and Riyom for take off.
He informed them that the board is currently managing 15 secondary hospitals across the state with only about 30 to 35 doctors among the 1920 staff of the board.
