… Says, ‘It’s baseless’
Godwin Akor, Makurdi
New President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Prof. Innocent Ujah, has said that the corruption and fraud allegations against him are baseless.
Prof. Ujah is the pioneer Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo, in Benue State.
He insisted that he has sufficiently demolished the allegations and sack from work at the Nigerian Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), in Lagos State, leveled against him having shown proofs that he was not corrupt while serving as the Director-General of the institute.
Prof. Ujah said this during a courtesy call on Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, at the Benue People’s House, on Wednesday.
He explained that he had over 90 percent of the votes cast at the recent NMA elections.
Prof. Ujah said the allegations did not stophim from winning the election because he ‘demolished’ the claims and assured that he would use his position to mediate between the doctors on strike and the government.
He also said the doctors needed to be motivated in this COVID-19 period and further promised to meet the doctors and the government at their points of disagreement.
He said his track records made him to win the election and emphasised that some of the doctors that contested with him did not get votes from their states nor zones.
The NMA president also said he would use his position to ensure that Benue has consultants not only in the Northwest Senatorial District, but also in the other Senatorial Districts so that medical attention would be given to the people at the grassroots.
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According to him, some people said he was not going to have the position of NMA president because he was already the vice chancellor of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo not knowing that performance does not depend on the size of the individual concerned but his ability.
He said Governor Ortom was instrumental to his success during NMA elections because he gave him moral support and commended Plateau and Benue medical associations for standing behind him.
Responding, Governor Ortom, represented by his deputy, Engr. Benson Abounu, expressed confidence in Prof. Ujah’s capacity in handling the two positions of vice chancellor and president of NMA.
Governor Ortom , therefore, appealed to Prof. Ujah to intervene in the strike by resident doctors stressing that such strikes were becoming too many.
