Obaze Storms Nnewi, Laments Smear Campaign By Obiano, APGA

The Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] Candidate for the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Anambra State, Mr. Oseloka H. Obaze has reiterated his commitment to efficient, accessible and affordable healthcare for all. 

He stated this at the commissioning of St. Felix Catholic Specialist Hospital Nnewi, saying that emergency medical services must be upgraded for Ndi Anambra. 

Obaze revealed his plan for a contributory Charity Care fund where the government, church, markets and any willing individual can contribute funds to the Charity Care scheme, which will be used to offset hospital bills of the indigent in Anambra State. 

He urged hospital managers not to reject patients because they cannot afford the required treatment but prioritize the safety of patients before anything else. 

“Nobody prays for sickness, nobody prays for accident, what we should be praying for is that in times of emergency one is injured is that we have good hospitals, good doctors, quality drugs, drinkable water and electricity”, he began. 

He said, “The first thing we will do in emergency response is that when we receive a patient, we commence treatment immediately, life comes first before anything else”.

“For my government, we will introduce what is called Charity Care for the indigent. 

“The government,  community, traders and independent groups can contribute funds to the Charity Care.  

“If any patient comes in here and is unable to pay, the hospital manager can discount the bill and send the remainder to the Charity Care administrator to offset the bill from that public pool. 

“The Charity Care can cover the whole health bill or a percentage of it depending on the evaluation of the patient by the hospital manager”.

He continued, “Our government will ensure every hospital whether private or mission-owned must have a charity care administrator and this will also help create jobs for unemployed Ndi Anambra”.

“If we are able to save lives from our charity care programme, beneficiaries will begin to contribute funds to the programme knowing that in their time of need, the charity care came to their rescue” Obaze ended. 

As he toured the hospital, the CEO, Fr. Peter Uzochukwu pleaded with the former United Nations official to help one of the patients who has been in the hospital for over two months due to inability to pay for her healthcare. 

Obaze obliged with a cheque of 500,000 naira to offset the health bill of N321,000 for Mrs. Mary Agbo and N179,000 to offset the health bill of other hospitalized patients in the hospital to a rapturous welcome [see below].

In his remarks, Fr. Uzochukwu thanked Mr. Obaze for his kind gesture and deep understanding of public policy implementation urging Ndi Anambra to stop at nothing in their support for Oseloka Obaze’s vision for the State. 

In another development, Mr. Obaze has decried the smear campaign unleashed on his person by APGA and Gov. Willie Obiano supporters.

Obaze said this in a press release issued today,  October 10.

He said: 

My attention has been drawn to various malicious reports on social media platforms directed at my person, aimed at tarnishing my image and credibility as the candidate of the PDP in the forthcoming elections. 

Such reckless postings constitute fake news, hate speeches and inciting fighting words.  Several posting breach fundamental ethics, free speech and even electoral laws. 

These malicious reports range from allusions that I fraudulently won the PDP primaries, which was nationally televised, to my going to a shrine to swear an allegiance, and of late, that I was admitted to a mental hospital in a New England, USA. 

Some have alluded that I have served a prison term under whatever pretext. Several have imputed and attributed to me views I did not express and meetings I did not attend.  

The perpetrators of these hatchet jobs on behalf of the Willie Obiano Campaign and APGA, have also made every effort to discredit my many years of selfless diligent national, international and state service.  

Rather than focus on the campaign issues they resort to a campaign of calumny.  I believe they continue to do so because the APGA leadership has given its tacit approval. 

I have taken these distraction with great equanimity, but there are acceptable limits of propagandizing. 

I wish to restate as anyone who have heard me speak publicly, that in my sixty-two years of life I’ve been blessed with good health and have never been admitted or spent a single day in any hospital, anywhere in the world.  

My educational and work years are properly accounted for in my biography, which is a matter of public record including Wikipedia. 

There is no missing link in my years education and work. 

I remain committed to standing above the fray of prebendal politics and running an issues-based  campaign.  

I hope, that the chairman of the Willie Obiano Campaign, Chief Victor Umeh will call his team to order.  

These social media posting have gone well beyond acceptable limits and therefore must cease. 

I wish to remind those who peddle such falsehood that it is not they alone that retain the prerogative of use of malicious information.  

As a public servant, and given my vantage position, I am capable of unearthing credible and sufficiently damaging information that if made public will alter the campaign narrative and trajectory.  

These include known and document cases of perversion of Justice. 

I would like to advise once again, that as we campaign, only the Governor of our state enjoy any form of prosecutorial immunity. 

Those who engage in libel and slander in the name of campaigning will be held responsible.  In seeking redress, there surely will be no statute of limitation. 

Finally, I hereby reiterate my commitment to run a campaign free of fake news, hate speech and calumny.  

I will dismiss anyone on my team who engages in such unacceptable conducts. 

I hope other Anambra State governorship candidates, including Gov. Willie Obiano will publicly make a similar commitment.

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