By BANNERNEWS Reporter, Calabar
The Cross River State Government has dismissed calls by the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) for the removal of the Commissioner for Health, Dr Henry Egbe Ayuk, insisting that the administration of Governor Bassey Otu has recorded measurable progress in revitalising the state’s healthcare system.
In a statement issued by the Ministry of Health’s Information Officer, Kingsley Agim, the government described the opposition’s allegations as misleading and politically motivated, accusing the coalition of ignoring ongoing reforms and completed projects across the state.
The government particularly faulted the CNPP’s focus on the Lawrence Henshaw Memorial Hospital in Calabar, noting that the facility was extensively damaged during the 2020 #EndSARS violence and is undergoing phased rehabilitation.
According to the ministry, the opposition deliberately highlighted sections still under renovation while overlooking completed interventions, including the fully rehabilitated and re-equipped Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory within the hospital complex.
It maintained that since assuming office in 2023, the Otu administration has revitalised more than 100 Primary Healthcare Centres across the state’s 18 local government areas, improving access to healthcare services in rural communities.
The ministry also listed ongoing upgrades at the General Hospital, Calabar, including digitalisation of healthcare services, improved patient record management, internet connectivity and the installation of a medical oxygen production plant.
It added that oxygen infrastructure has been provided at General Hospitals in Calabar and Ogoja, while similar facilities at the Ikom Children Clinic are awaiting commissioning alongside rehabilitation works in other public health institutions.
Government further disclosed that the General Hospital, Obudu, abandoned for over a decade, is being revived, with efforts underway to restore critical services, including dialysis, while recovering other public health facilities previously ceded to private interests.
The ministry argued that rebuilding a neglected healthcare system requires phased implementation, careful planning and prudent resource management rather than what it described as politically motivated criticism.
It maintained that the administration has continued to balance investments in healthcare with other critical sectors such as education, road infrastructure, agriculture, security and tourism despite prevailing economic challenges.
The government challenged critics to objectively compare the condition of health facilities inherited in 2023 with the interventions currently underway before reaching conclusions on the administration’s performance.
Meanwhile, the CNPP had earlier called on Governor Otu to sack the health commissioner after passing a vote of no confidence in him, alleging poor leadership, shortages of essential medicines, dilapidated health facilities and inadequate healthcare personnel across government hospitals and primary healthcare centres.
The opposition coalition said its position followed consultations with member political parties and reports received from communities across the state, urging the governor to appoint a new commissioner to reposition the health sector.
