1 week ago
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From Wilson Okereke, Afikpo
Presidential candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, has paid a maiden visit to the College of Nursing Sciences, Mater Misericordiae, Afikpo in Ebonyi State, where he doled out N10 million to the institution.
Addressing the students, he said that the measurement of development of any society lies on the tripod of health, pulling people out of poverty and education. So, he charged the students to be serious with their studies.
“This is one of the professions that the world needs most nowadays because the nurses are the most important persons in the health system as they are always with patients every day.
“Therefore, they are hot cakes needed globally to save lives and this is why I protested when the Nursing Council of Nigeria was making it impossible to certify the personnel that want to travel abroad.
“I said no, that they should be allowed to go so that when we fix Nigeria, they will come back,” he said.
The former Anambra governor described the institution as one of the biggest facilities that he had seen in the recent period, disclosing that he had partnered with over 50 nursing schools across the nation.
Obi said the partnership was an investment in the future of the students and suggested that Nigeria should try to produce 500,000 nurses annually as those exported would contribute to the country’s foreign exchange generation.
According to him, the nurses are important for both healthcare and exportation. He praised the Catholic Diocese of Abakaliki for the maiden visit and its remarkable work in the health sector, urging Ebonyi government for partnership.
The College Administrator, Rev. Fr. Simon Isueseni said the institution was one of the premier health institutions established in 1946, stating that it has been training nurses and midwives since the past 76 years.
“Our current population is 816 students for the Nursing and 145 students for Midwifery making a total of 961 students in training,” he said.
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