Medical doctors in Rivers State now live in fear as they have become targets of kidnappers. Five doctors were abducted within the last three months.
The doctors kidnapped recently in Port Harcourt are: Dr Bob-Manuel Clark, a medical doctor based in Omoku, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, Dr Alex Akani, a consultant physician with University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, UPTH. Another consultant with UPTH, Dr Borimari was kidnapped last month.
Dr Florence Onah, a consultant family physician with the state owned Braitwaite Memorial Hospital, BMH, was not lucky as she was killed by her captors as they tried to take her away from her GRA residence. She was shot by the gunmen.
Over 90 days after Dr Bob-Manuel Clark was abducted in Omoku, his whereabouts is still unknown. His family said they were yet to establish contact with his abductors since his kidnap on 23rd March, 2017.
Omoku , an oil and gas rich community have in the recent times been over run by cultists and gun runners on a killing spree.
The rampant killings and abductions made residents of the community to desert the area until security agents moved in to restore peace recently.
In 2015 a medical doctor based at Elekahia part of the state was abducted by yet to be identified gunmen. Five days after his abduction, his dead body was found in the bush. The death of the medical doctor whose identity could not be established as at press time sparked off protests by medical doctors in the state as they matched to government house to lodge their complaint to the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike.
The Chief of Staff to the governor, Engineer Emeka Woke who addressed the protesters on behalf of the governor promised them that the state government would do everything possible to protect them. But despite the promise, abduction of medical doctors in the state has continued.
The abduction of Dr Alex Akani at his Rumuekini residence in Port Harcourt frayed nerves among the medical doctors in the state. Dr Akani, who was abducted for the second time was taken away from his house at about 3.00a.m. on Friday more than a fortnight ago.
He was released six days after when his colleagues at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital went on an indefinite strike.
The Public Relation Officer of the Medical and Dental Association of Nigeria, Dr Chukwuemeka Emmanuel who had earlier announced the decision of the association to embark on strike said the indefinite strike was aimed at drawing the attention of government and security agents to their plight.
The Rivers State branch of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, lamented what it described as targeted abduction of medical doctors in the state. The Public Relations Officer of the association, Dr Ohaka Justice lamented the abductions of more than five doctors within three months.
Dr Justice expressed concern that medical doctors who he said provide medical services that save lives should be targeted for abduction by kidnappers.
He appealed to Rivers State government and other relevant security agents in the state to come to the aid of doctors to ensure that their lives and that of their families are protected.
Rivers State Police Command Public Relation Officer, Nnamdi Omoni said that the state police command was doing its best to rescue kidnapped medical doctors.
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