Nigeria-Health: Fakeye blames government for high maternal mortality rate

Health-Nigeria - Professor Olurotimi Fakeye of the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, University of Ilorin, has blamed the high incidences of high maternal mortality in Nigeria on government's assistance of the health sector. Prof. Fakeye, a former chief medical director of University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), disclosed this while delivering the 93rd Inaugural Lecture of the University, entitled "That Our Women Die Not In Vain" last Thursday at the University of Ilorin main Auditorium.

He said "Nigeria has the world's second highest number of maternal mortality with approximately 59,000 deaths annually. Although Nigeria makes up 2 percent of the world's population, it accounts for 10 percent of its maternal deaths. Nigeria's maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is 545 maternal deaths per 100,000 livebirth (DHS 2008) with a range of 200 - 1800 per 100,000 livebirths", he said.

While attributing the figures to poor budgetary allocation and underfunding of the health sector by government, the don, decried the jumbo salary of the Nigerian legislators, saying that part of their pay could be used to better the nation's health sector and reduce the incidences of maternal death.

His words: "Our lawmakers provide for themselves jumbo pay at the expense of lives of the poor, powerless women and children. This is immoral. Their insensitivity is aptly described by the classical expression "Nero fiddled while Rome burned". I am sure you will join me in using the Shakespeare's quote in warning our lawmakers "Tempt not a desperate man" and by extension, "Tempt not a desperate nation".

Prof. Fakeye also called on the National Assembly to stop the "jumpo pay" and the awarding of itself that kind of salary and join the salary scale as prescribed by the National Salaries and Wages Commission.

He further said that between now and 2015, an annual increase ratio of total health expenditure divided by GDP by one percent point be legislated in order to enable Nigeria attain the Millenium Development Goals pertaining to health, education and poverty reduction.

While quoting Mahmoud Fathalla who said that "Women are not dying because of a disease we cannot treat. They are dying because societies have to make decision that their lives are worth saying", the don lampooned the political class on their failure to address the critical situation of health sector.

"Our persistent, unrelenting high mortality rate over the last three decades is a clear evidence of failure of our political system, both at national leadership and operational level. At national level we lack of political will, bounteous rhetoric and grandstanding. Many State governors boast of free antenatal care, but show lack of understanding that a greater proportion of maternal deaths occur during labour, delivery and the first 24 hours postnatal for which women require free emergency obstetric care facilities", he said.

He described abortion as a silent pandemic" that requires legislation on safe abortion.

He said "3,000 Nigerian women who die annually die preventable deaths; they die without gains, stressing that more striking was when one deeply reflects on the profile of women who die from abortion; 55 percent are aged under 25 years, 60 percent are childless, 18 percent have university education, 19 percent are schooling and risk expulsion and among those aged 30-45 years are many who are married, wanting to stop or delay further childbearing. Do these women need to die without gains?"

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