EXTRA: Nasarawa gov to spend two weeks in US for medical check-up

Abdullahi Sule, governor of Nasarawa state, has travelled to the United States for medical check-up.

The governor said he will spend about two weeks abroad — from December 13 to December 29 — during which the deputy governor will act in his capacity.

He disclosed this via a letter to the state house of assembly, which was read during plenary session on Monday.

The letter, titled, ‘Notification to Travel to the United States of America’, read: “I wish to inform the Right Honourable Speaker that I shall be travelling to the United States of America for medical check-up from Sunday, 13th to Saturday, 29th December, 2020.

“Accordingly, in my absence, the deputy governor would oversee the affairs of the state pending my return.”

The governor’s two-week trip for a medical check-up comes amid concerns  regarding the state’s unimpressive financial status.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nasarawa made N10.8 billion as internally generated revenue (IGR) in 2019 — the 10th least among the 36 states and the federal capital territory (FCT), and 37 times lesser than what Lagos made.

The governor is not alone though: Nigerian public officials are known to patronise foreign countries for medical treatment, such that a move to halt such trips was rejected by the house of representatives in 2019.

In 2019, President Muhammadu Buhari spent almost half of the year — 150 days — in the UK, treating an undisclosed ailment, despite the presence of the presidential clinic which has gulped billions of naira over the years.

Despite being Africa’s biggest economy, Nigeria’s health sector has not recorded much improvement as a result of many factors, including poor funding.