-Governor Expected Back in Imo State Soon
IMO State Governor Rochas Okorocha suffered no life-threatening injuries from a road accident involving his convoy over the weekend, his aides say.
The aides cited the reports of tests carried out by a British hospital where the governor was flown over the weekend following the accident, which was disclosed as a ‘minor’ by his office.
Sunday’s update on the governor’s condition was issued by Mr. Chinedu Offor, who said that the governor is expected back in Imo State after tests on him showed no cause for concern.
According to Offor, who issued a statement in Owerri, Governor Okorocha did not sustain any head fracture or internal bleeding from the accident.
He relayed the governor’s appreciation to the people of Imo for their concern and prayer for him, saying he would soon be back to continue his official duties.
Offor said the governor had been discharged and was expected to return to the hospital as an out-patient.
The incident involving the governor, and his almost immediate evacuation from the country for specialized medical checks, has ignited commentators online and on mainstream media to point to the inequalities in access to good healthcare in Nigeria.
When it exists, which is very rare, most Nigerians cannot afford good healthcare. They are left at the mercy of quacks or insensitive medical personnel who refuse to care for persons who are unable to pay for their medical care.
In recent years, Nigerians who can afford it have taken to traveling abroad for checks or attention to urgent medical concerns.
Politicians naturally prefer to go abroad for rudimentary checks. A few of them, including at least two former first ladies, Maryam Babangida and Stella Obasanjo, have died in foreign hospitals where they had gone to seek medical attention.
At least one governor remains hospitalized abroad, receiving medical attention for serious injuries sustained from a small aircraft he personally flew near his home state of ???? last year.
Another governor, Sullivan Chime, only returned to the country last month, after several months abroad receiving treatment for what was reported to be cancer in his nose.