No isolation centre in Yola despite Fintiri’s N500m grant

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) isolation centre formerly located at the German hospital within a specialist hospital in Adamawa State, and later relocated to the psychiatric clinic, is nowhere to be found after Governor Ahmadu Fintiri released N500 million take-off grant to the COVID-19 committee.

Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Bashiru Ahmad, heads the committee.

When The Guardian visited the German hospital to see the doctors handling the isolation centre, a medical consultant, who did not want his name in print, said the isolation centre had been relocated out of the hospital.

He conducted our reporter round the hospital for confirmation.

Also at the psychiatric clinic, where the isolation centre was relocated, the employees on duty told our reporter that their patients were prematurely discharged on government’s instructions to use the place as COVID-19 isolation centre, but “till now, work has not resumed establishing the isolation centre.”

One of them prodded our reporter to go round and take a look at the “empty wards”.

A nurse stated: “Government asked us to discharge our patients prematurely; but see now, where is the isolation centre. Only God can help Adamawa people if the coronavirus pandemic attacks the state. This is because there is no place to quarantine suspected cases in the state.”

The Commissioner for Health, Professor Abdullahi Isa, told journalists last week in Yola that six people quarantined in Adamawa tested negative for the pandemic.

He said blood samples of the six suspected cases were taken to Abuja for test and that after the clinical examination, the results were negative.

He said that Chief Emeka Offor Foundation donated one trailer-load of medical equipment to enable the state fight COVID-19, pointing out that the isolation centre was relocated to the psychiatric clinic in an isolated area within the hospital to avoid suspected patients interacting with out-outdoor patients.

The commissioner, who called on the Federal Government to approve the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Yola laboratory for blood samples testing, noted that the state was having difficulties transporting blood samples to Abuja for analysis.

Isa denied that the state government received assistance from the Federal Government.

“We are hearing of the financial assistance from the media, but we have not seen one naira in our coffers as a donation from the Federal Government.”

The Guardian put several phone calls and messages to Ahmad, as well as the Commissioner for Information, Dr. Umar Pella, also a member of the COVID-19 committee, but there was no reply.