Members of the Federal House of Representatives Committee on Healthcare Services have praised Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, for what they described as unprecedented progress in the state’s healthcare sector.
The commendation was led by the Committee Chairman, Hon. Dr. Amos Gwamna Magaji, during a working visit to the Governor’s office on Tuesday, January 28, as part of the committee’s nationwide oversight of the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF).
Hon. Magaji explained that the committee has toured more than 30 states to evaluate the effectiveness of the BHCPF, especially amid calls to increase the fund from one percent to two percent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
According to him, the visit to Abia State was necessary to assess whether the increased funding would translate into tangible healthcare outcomes. He noted that what the committee observed in Abia went beyond healthcare, extending to infrastructure and power, which indirectly strengthen health delivery.
He specifically highlighted the Geometric Power Project in Aba, describing it as a transformational initiative capable of turning Abia and Nigeria at large into a major industrial hub.
The lawmaker further applauded Governor Otti for changing long-standing perceptions about Abia State, particularly in sanitation, road infrastructure, power supply, and urban cleanliness.
Magaji remarked that the level of transformation witnessed surpassed expectations, likening the experience to the biblical account of the Queen of Sheba, who found King Solomon’s achievements greater than what she had heard.
He stated that Abia State has become one of Nigeria’s emerging success stories, praising flagship initiatives such as Project Ekwueme and the Governor’s governance style rooted in excellence and accountability.
While acknowledging Nigeria’s troubling maternal mortality rate currently among the highest globally Hon. Magaji commended the Abia State Government for reversing the trend over the past decade through sustained investment in maternal and child healthcare.
He listed key achievements including the revitalisation of maternal health centres, strengthening of specialist hospitals in Umuahia, and the recent accreditation of the Abia State University Teaching Hospital. He also applauded the Governor’s commitment to increasing the health budget in line with the 2001 Abuja Declaration, which recommends allocating at least 15 percent of annual budgets to healthcare.
In his response, Governor Alex Otti reaffirmed that healthcare remains a top priority of his administration, describing it as a critical social infrastructure comparable to road construction.
The Governor stated that his goal is to ensure that anyone who walks into a primary healthcare centre in Abia State has the highest possible chance of survival, stressing that infrastructure alone is not enough without qualified medical personnel.
He explained that some completed healthcare facilities were deliberately kept non-operational until the right professionals were recruited, to ensure quality service delivery.
Governor Otti also noted that many Nigerians are unaware of the Abuja Declaration, which informed his administration’s decision to allocate no less than 15 percent of the state’s budget to healthcare.
He added that his government views healthcare spending as a social responsibility rather than an investment driven by profit expectations, noting that the approach has already begun to yield positive results.
According to the Governor, recent recruitment exercises have attracted highly skilled medical professionals from abroad, including doctors from the United States and South Africa. He revealed that a neurosurgeon recently joined Abia’s health workforce from New York.
Governor Otti attributed this success to the creation of a safe, functional, and dignified living environment, stressing that professionals thrive where security, basic amenities, and quality education are guaranteed.
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Earlier, the Chairman of the Abia State House Committee on Health, Hon. Emeka Jacob Obioma, and the Commissioner for Health, Professor Enoch Ogbonnaya Uche, highlighted the administration’s healthcare milestones and thanked the Governor for redefining healthcare delivery in the state.
Top government officials, including the Chief of Staff, Pastor Caleb Ajagba, Ph.D, Special Advisers on Health and Legislative Matters, the Director-General of the Strategic Communication Bureau, and heads of state-owned health institutions, were present during the visit.