Yinka ADETUNJI
Mr. Olufemi Onireti has revealed his next line of action over his row with the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) Teaching Hospital (LTH), Ogbomoso.
The chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Mr. Onireti, was alleged of supervsing the assault on a doctor at the hospital last Sunday.
However, the politician has debunked the allegation suggesting the institution had misrepresented the fact.
The hospital management in a release widely circulated online maintained Onireti ordered the beating of a medical doctor at the institution (whose name was not given by the management) when he brought a patient last Sunday.
The chairman of the PDP in Osupa ward 9, Ogbomoso North local government of Oyo state, Hon Iyanda Olatunde Martins a.k.a. Bokky, who later died at Bowen University Teaching Hospital, BUTH, also in Ogbomoso, was the patient taken to the hospital by Onireti and some other leaders of the party on Sunday morning.
It was while he was being attended to that the alleged infraction occured.
The incident according to a press release by the institution (not signed) has led to a category of workers embarking on strike action demanding unreserved apology from the politician.
It also said the matter had been reported at a police station.
The press release says, “The management of LAUTECH Teaching Hosptal, Ogbomoso has frowned at a disturbing event which took place at the Accident and Emergency Unit of the hospital on Sunday, September 25th. A doctor of the hospital (names witheld) was beaten black and blue by the security aides of one Mr Femi Onireti, an upcoming politician in Oyo State.
“The Management of the hospital, who (sic) decried the development said it was uncharitable for anyone to threaten or bully medical personnel in the line of duty.”
The management expressing dismay at what it described as the unfriendly and unsavoury conduct of Mr Onireti, noted that such attitude was capable of putting the lives of medical staff in jeopardy.
The management now warned members of the public no matter how highly placed against interfering with the management of patients in the future.
“The Management warns and implores the politician and other members of the community to desist from interfering in the protocol involving patient management.”
It insisted Mr Onireti must apologize to the hospital and to the victim over the assault, stressing such act would not be tolerated henceforth.
, “The politician was commanding the doctors to place his patient on oxygen and also instructed that he should be taken to Intensive Care Unit.
“The politician, with the help of his assailants descended on a medical doctor, a staff (sic) of the hospital, thinking the doctor was filming their devilish displays at the A&E section of the hospital.
“Owing to the assault by Mr Onireti and his aides, the doctors at the hospital have embarked on indefinite strike until an apology is tendered to the hospital and phones seized from the victim by the politician and his aides are returned. The matter has been reported to the concerned police station by the victim for necessary action,” the release stated.
But Onireti has maintained he never gave any of his aide order to beat up any medical practitioner asserting he was too urbane and humane to do such.
In a counter-press release also obtained by ogbomosoinsightonline.com, Onireti stated all his actions that day were geared towards saving his ward chairman regretting however that the doctors on duty did not show the commitment expected of a hospital of that nature.
He alleged the hospital of laxity in the discharge of its duty noting that was what prompted the request for a better service.
The founder and executive chairman of Femi Onireti Foundation who informed he was regularly involved in medical humanitarian programmes in hospitals and would not engage in activities capable of jeopardizing medical protocols affirmed he was only concerned about the critical condition of Bokky who obviously was dying and was being neglected.
The release signed by his media consultant, Olawoyin Edris Busayo, states, “On getting there, he found the patient in much discomfort particularly having difficulty breathing. Alarmed, Hon Onireti called the attention of the doctor on duty to his discovery and requested that he be placed on oxygen.
“But there was no prompt response, obviously, the doctor on duty was overwhelmed with attending to other patients. So, Onireti, already agitated over the deteriorating condition of his parent, requested that he be put in the private ICU so he could receive intensive care. However, the doctor spurned this request saying their private ICU was not functioning and he advised the patient be taken to the Bowen University Teaching Hospital (BUTH).
“The condition of Hon Onireti’s patient became critical throwing him and his entourage into real panic but to their utmost shock another person later called a doctor was sighted positioning his phone as if he was recording the unfolding activities! Why would a doctor be busy with phone when another was stressed up! Moreover, it was an intrusion into the privacy of the patient (s).
“In such frenzy mood, one of the persons in his entourage dashed across to verify his (the doctor recording) mission, politicians couldn’t be too careful. Onireti was not even conscious of what was going on at that point, he was rather preoccupied with saving the life of the patient. Surely, a ruckus erupted but was settled.
“So, it is a rude shock to us to be confronted with the allegation that Femi Onireti beat up a doctor or that a doctor was beaten up on his order. That is preposterous. Certainly, the said doctor’s action was a professional breach and an infraction bordering on negligence of duty. But that was not to say Onireti gave order for the attack on the doctor. He is too humane and urbane to engage in such infamy. This is someone that often takes humanitarian programmes to hospitals to relieve patients of financial burdens.”
Onireti, an international businessman, emphasizing he did not beat or ask any doctor to be beaten, meanwhile observed that he should be the one threatening the hospital with litigation for negligence of duty that contributed to the demise of his patient but that he was the one being harassed by the hospital.
“When we should be considering litigation for negligence of duty on the part of the hospital leading to the demise of a PDP ward chairman, we are being harassed with allegation of assault.”
He further queried the rationale of the purported strike action by the doctors over the matter averring it was wrong to jeopardize the lives of other patients in the hospital for whatever reason.
This is just as he posited the action of the hospital since the matter erupted smack of blackmail.
“We are being told the whole hospital has downtooled because ‘Femi Onireti supervised the beating of a doctor,’ thereby predisposing other patients to danger. Doesn’t that sound ludicrous?
“It sounds like blackmail with input from fifth columnists. We hold that the health of patients should be held more paramount than any (alleged) shortcoming of Onireti. He was at the verge of losing a dear party leader, emotion was high at the time and everybody was in panic mode. He can’t be held responsible for such offense.”
Revealing he holds “the medical profession and its practitioners in a very high esteem” and “couldn’t have wilfully engaged in what he was accused of,” however appealed to the doctors to return to work promising to do the needful.
“However, for the sake of the patients in the reputable hospital, whose lives are dear to him, to them, to their people and in fact to the nation, we appeal to the striking workers to reconsider and go back to work. We will make a reconciliatory visit to the hospital.”
