Over 1000 rural dwellers in Ajegunle, a densely populated community in Lagos, yesterday received free medical treatment in an exercise lined up to mark the 63rd anniversary of the Nigerian Navy.
Those who benefited from the exercise included aged women and their children, who came out in their numbers to be treated.
The Baale (village head) of the Alayabiagba town in Ajegunle, Apapa community, Adeshina Ojora, while speaking with journalists, expressed his joy about the gesture of the Navy.
“This is not the Navy’s first time of doing us favours. We thank them and we are still asking them for more,” Ojora said.
One of the beneficiaries, Maurice Inabome, 54, who was waiting for a test on his eye and general body check, also described the gesture as “a welcome development.”
Inabome was later given reading glasses, and was also tested for malaria and diabetes, among others.
He advised everyone in the community to always check their health status, adding, “it saves life”.
The Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Oladele Daji, said that the medical outreach was a way of giving back to the society.
Daji, who was represented by the Chief Staff Officer, Western Naval Command, Rear Adm Muritala Bashir, said, “Ajegunle is our host community and this is one of the ways we can reach out to them.”
He said patients would be diagnosed and drugs given for treatment, while difficult cases would be referred for further investigation.
According to Daji, the outreach would cover checking of blood pressure, eye test, malaria, typhoid, testing for blood sugar level and HIV, among others.
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