Just like that

A former health minister in Zimbabwe once said in 1997 I think, that there are alternatives to death in Europe while it also has options in United States, but inevitable in Africa. He said this two decades ago on why mortality was on the increase at a World Health Organisation forum. Painfully, the situation has gone worse for many in Africa.

Often, it is not the accident or sickness that kills in this part of the world but the negligence and ineptness of people charged with protection of lives and treating sick people. And that is the sad story of a young woman, Ifedolapo Oladepo, a first class Transport Management graduate of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State who died recently at Gwarzo General Hospital, Kano. On assignment at Kano for her national service, the NYSC management failed in its duty of care to her and left her family to mourn. Her school had been in the throes of a strike action by lecturers for nearly a year now due to a needless kerfuffle between the owner states – Osun and Oyo, even when the same party, All Progressives Congress, is governing them. So it’s an achievement that she escaped from the prison that the institution has become only for the Kano State NYSC to snuff life out of her in a way.

As one who has suffered bereavement due to negligence, nothing can assuage the pain, not even bringing the culprits to book but it is more painful when a parent loses his daughter in such circumstances when quick action could have prevented the death. The lame defence put forward by Abdullahi Baba, the Kano NYSC state coordinator, as published in a newspaper last week only confirmed what public officials in our country think of citizens’ lives. This man, who one is not sure is a father, as a person who understands what it takes to bring up a child to a university graduate level will not utter such inanity that “she did not died at the camp but at a government hospital” as though his oversight function ends at the orientation camp or that the death location absolved him or the agency he works for from Oladepo’s death.

The story is that the young woman got to Kano via road, apparently the means of transportation the parents could afford, and so was tired and weary from the stress of the long trip. Anyone who travels on our roads will know how treacherous they have become that reaching one’s destination safely deserves a thanksgiving service. Her tiredness thereafter prevented her from participating well in the military drill NYSC orientation camps are known for leading to her collapsing during an exercise. This account, by her sister, widely shared on social media and yet to be disputed by NYSC officials, had it that they refused to help her on the premise that she was pretending so as not to continue with the drill. Yes, you read that right, and so they neglected her until when they saw that her condition was serious and she was no thespian.  They then took her to Gwarzo General Hospital where she was able to contact her sister, a nurse, who told the nurse on duty what to do. Unfortunately, the hospital did not have the drugs that could save her life and so, Ifedolapo Oladepo died, just like that. Killed by the Nigerian state that failed her in equipping a general hospital well, that failed her in having clueless and wicked NYSC officials including soldiers conducting the drill and could not protect her when she was vulnerable.

As I write this, the NYSC director general has not said a word and the superintending minister, the comic actor known as Solomon Dalong, could not be bothered as well. He’s probably busy searching for the next trip that will take him out of Nigeria. There has been no enquiries or inquest not to talk of arrest over this needless death. Beyond lamentation on social media and typing “RIP” as youngsters today do, there has been no protest by those who are still at the orientation camp in Kano; there has been no mobilization demanding for probe into this death and we all just shrug our shoulders pretending nothing happened because we are not affected. The NYSC seems more interested in its budgetary allocation and purchase of uniforms, boots, and food items for thousands of young graduates in its care than their welfare.

The scheme, like many things in our country, is due for reform. Now I learnt that it is not automatic that graduates are ‘mobilised’ as participation is no longer guaranteed. Unlike two batches years ago, there are three now and it’s not uncommon for graduates of a school to be in different batches. Ifedolapo must not die in vain; all culpable in her death must be brought to book as without that, NYSC could as well be scrapped.