PAP to partner BMU on producing more medical professionals in Niger Delta

Dennis Otuaro, administrator of the presidential amnesty programme (PAP), says he will partner with the Bayelsa Medical University (BMU) to address the shortage of medical professionals in the Niger Delta.

Otuaro said there is a paucity of medical personnel in the region, adding that one of the major objectives of the PAP is human capital development.

He spoke on Friday when he led the PAP management team on a visit to the BMU.

The administrator said the amnesty programme office and the BMU could strengthen their partnership to train more students in critical areas in the health sector.

Igoniko Oduma, his special assistant on media, quoted the PAP administrator as saying the Niger Delta is faced with the challenges of limited infrastructure and human capital development.

He praised the BMU for being a success story of the PAP scholarship scheme, and playing the role for which it was established by the Bayelsa state government.

“The amnesty programme under my watch will focus on developing the human capital in the Niger Delta,” he said.

“The Bayelsa Medical University is very vital at this time when we need more trained medical professionals to cater to the healthcare needs of our people and drive development in the Niger Delta region.”

Also speaking, Ebitimitula Etebu, the vice-chancellor of BMU, congratulated the PAP administrator on his appointment.

He commended Otuaro for visiting tertiary institutions where scholarship students are studying, saying it “demonstrates the vigour and dynamism you have brought to the programme”.

Etebu also made a case for more collaborations between the university and PAP in professional courses. He asked the administrator to consider creating a special scholarship scheme for the health sector.

“I believe we should be able to take advantage of the Presidential Amnesty Programme to leave a lasting legacy for our people and impact them positively”, the VC said.

Apart from BMU, Otuaro also interacted with the PAP scholarship beneficiaries in Igbenedion University and Benson Idahosa University in Edo state; the Western Delta University, Oghara; the Edwin Clark University, Kiagbodo; and the Michael and Cecelia Ibru University, Ughelli, all in Delta.

The presidential amnesty programme was established in 2009 to disarm, demobilise and reintegrate ex-agitators into society and expand educational opportunities for indigenes of impacted communities.