From Steve Oko, Umuahia
The 2019 Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance in Abia State , Dr. Alex Otti, Thursady distributed medical items to the Federal Medical Centre and Madonna Catholic Hospital, both in Umuahia, for the prevention of the spread of coronavirus.
The distribution of the items, which was handled by Otti’s Media Assistant, Mr Ferdinand Ekeoma, was facilitated by the Alex Otti Foundation.
Presenting the items to Madonna Catholic Hospital, Umuahia, the former banker represented by his Media Aide, Ferdinand Ekeoma described the gesture as the foundation’s modest contribution to save the lives of the people.
He said the world was in a critical moment that required collective effort for survival.
His word : “A time like this, when the coronavirus pandemic is ravaging the whole world, calls for support to enable the hospitals to provide adequate medicare to Abia residents.
“It is the foundation’s little way to encourage the benefitting hospitals to continue to save lives.”
Meanwhile some of the items included cartons of face masks and hand gloves, some pairs of booths, packs of guggles, infrared thermometers and medical robes, among others.
A member of the Board of Madonna Catholic Hospital, Dr Charity Egwuekwe, who received the items on behalf of the hospital, thanked Otti and his foundation for “the noble and humanitarian gesture.”
He thanked Otti for the gesture and urged him not to relent but continue to extend his benevolence to humanity and prayed that God would reward him.
Also, the Administrator of the hospital, Rev.-Fr. Christian Anokwuru, expressed profound thanks to Otti for “his selfless service to the hospital and humanity.”
He assured that the items would be freely deployed in providing medicare to the people and not for profit purpose.
He urged other well-meaning Abia indigenes and corporate bodies “to emulate Otti’s kind gesture” by providing similar support to hospitals and health facilities in the state.
He also commended the Abia government for its efforts to prevent the spread of the virus in the state but called for more interventions to ensure that the disease did not escalate.
At the FMC Umuahia, the Medical Director, Dr Azubuike Onyebuchi thanked Otti for his magnanimity.
The CMD appealed to other well-to-do Abia indigenes to assist the hospital to get fully prepared to respond to any emergencies from the pandemic.
He gave full assurance that the hospital was ready to handle any outbreak of the pandemic even though there was no index case yet in the state
Otti also donated a building with items to Living Word hospital Umucham Aba to serve as isolation centre for Aba.
