Anambra to pay N20 million hospital bill of man brutalized by govt agency

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By Madu Obi

THE Anambra State government has decided to pick the hospital bill of one Mr Okechukwu Akeneme, who was brutalized by agents of the state during revenue drive in Onitsha.

Akaneme, a former chairman of Onitsha Federated Chapel of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), and chairman of Onitsha Chamber of Commerce recently had his neck and spinal cord broken by some agents of the Anambra State Waste Management Agency (ASWAMA), during an altercation over payment of waste disposal bill.

The agents had initially dismissed Akaneme's claim that the brutalization crippled him and described his claim as pretence. But the victim became seriously sick and was first moved to a hospital in Onitsha and later to Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH), Nnewi, which later refered him to Memphis Hospital in Enugu.

It was gathered that his health had deteriorated, even as he has incurred about N20 million hospital bill, a situation that led to an uproar among members of the public, with many people calling on the state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo to intervene.

In response to Akaneme's situation, it was gathered that Governor Soludo announced during the state executive council meeting on Tuesday, that the state government has resolved to settle the hospital bill.

The state commissioner for information, Dr Law Mefor, in a press statement, said the resolution became feasible after government sent a fact -finding team to visit the victim.

He said: "The 37th Anambra State Executive Council (ANSEC) meeting received the report of the fact-finding team sent by the Soludo government to the victim of brutality by some contractors of ASWAMA, Mr. Okechukwu Akaneme, who is hospitalized in Enugu.

In response to the report, the council resolved to pick up the medical expenses of Mr Okechukwu Akaneme while sympathizing with his family and praying for his quick recovery."