“This is due to absolute
neglect on the part of the YabaTech authorities and Nigerian medical workers outside
the walls of this school” That was how some of the friends of Oluwabukola
Charity Dazan, 27, (January 9, 1989 – February 10, 2016) sum up the
circumstances that led to the tragic death of their friend.
Oluwabukola was
an only child whose parents live in Oko Afon, Badagry in Lagos state. According
to sources, she finished writing a practical examination (Advanced Web
Page Design) around 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday when she suddenly fell ill.
She went to
the medical center to be attended to when her condition deteriorated.
“They
simply gave her paracetamol or something and refused to let her into the sick
ward where there are beds she could sleep in,” the student said.
“Dazan
was not allowed past the clinic’s lobby. I wasn’t surprised. That’s how they do
here. They are pathetic.
Dazan’s
friends decided to take her to a hostel (Akata Hall) where she could rest on a
“manageable” bed.
This was
around 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
“One
hour later, she was complaining of having pains in both hands so we rushed her
back to the medical center,” another student said.
“They
just checked her and gave her some drugs again. However, did not admit her into
the sick ward. She was again restricted to the lobby. They said there were no
available beds inside the sick ward.
“Around
10:00 p.m., the school medics discharged her again but this time she could
neither stand nor walk.
“Around
11:00 p.m., she started complaining again…this time bitterly,” another student said.
“So
we returned her to the medical center. The medics, this time, referred her to
the Federal Medical Center (FMC) in Ebute-Metta.
“They
drove her there in their bus with a letter from the chief doctor at Yabatech
medical center.
“FMC
officials told us they won’t attend to Dazan until a N35,000 admission fee and
some other registration fee were paid. Everything totalled approximately
N43,000,”
“We
pleaded with FMC to begin treating Dazan as we would go out in search of the
money.
“But
FMC refused and told us to take Dazan’s weak body. I was particularly shocked
by their statement and body language. They didn’t act like they had children or
were human for that matter.
“So
we drove Dazan back to YabaTech to raise the money. The chief doctor at
YabaTech gave us N10,000. Dazan’s fellowship (YabaTech Cherubim and
Seraphim, C&S, Fellowship) raised N25,000. Dazan’s roommates raised N3,000.
With the
money now raised, Dazan’s friends went back to the hospital as quickly as
possible, but she was already deteriorating.
“I’m
dying, please help me, I’m dying”
“On
returning to FMC, we were instructed to follow due process in paying the fees.
FMC said treatment would not commence until we presented the receipts, Dazan’s despondent friend said.
“At
this point, Dazan started saying, albeit faintly ‘I’m dying, please help me.
I’m dying. I’m dying. Help me’.”
“‘Shut
up and keep quite my friend’, a doctor shut her down.
“We
split ourselves into two groups. Some went to pay the admission fee. The other
group went to pay for drip and blood. Our nurse was with FMC staff and Dazan.
“Before
we returned, FMC had taken Dazan into the ward and ran some tests on her.
That’s what they told us when we returned to present the receipts. It was
around 2:00 a.m. on Wednesday now.
We were told the test result was
‘paperwhite’.
“They
said they couldn’t locate Dazan’s veins. So there was no way they could pass
any water or blood into her bloodstream. In fact, they said she had no single
drop of blood left in her body. We were wondering what this could mean,” one of her friends said.
“When
the medics at FMC returned to Dazan’s bed, they found her dead. That’s how this
evil system took our friend away. Just like that. They said only the N600 money
for card would be refunded. The rest wasn’t refundable.
“FMC
also refused to issue Dazan’s death certificate because she didn’t stay up to
24 hours at the facility,” another student said.
“Dazan’s
dead body was driven back to YabaTech medical center some minutes after 2:00
a.m.
“However,
YabaTech medics left her corpse in the bus and failed to wash or dress her. She
had defecated on herself in her last moments. They left her there, in her mess,
till daybreak.
“It
was around 8:00 a.m. when one of us who didn’t follow us to FMC went looking
for Dazan. She thought her classmate was still alive.”
The
classmate in question was tracked down by reports, here’s what she said:
“She
smelled, she was swollen”
“I
didn’t know she had died. I went to the medical center and searched the sick
ward but couldn’t find Dazan on any of the beds. I didn’t know what to think.
“The
medical center’s bus was parked inside the premises. On my way out, I noticed
there were flies in and around the ambulance. There were lots of flies. That
was when it hit me,”
she said.
“I
moved closer to the bus and took a look. Dazan was there, dead. She smelled.
She was swollen. The nurses didn’t take care of the body.
“When
the security officers knew what I had discovered, they rushed towards me and dragged
me away. I was shocked.”
1 comment:
Too shocked to say anything. Unbelievable!!
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