A Medical Doctor identified as Dr. Uyi Iluobe, has been shot dead in a hospital in Delta state.
Iluobe was gruesomely murdered at his privately-owned hospital (Olive clinic) in the town of Oghara-eki.
He was said to have been killed by aggrieved relatives of a patient who died from a gunshot wound in the hospital.
The incident happened on December 31, 2022 while everyone was busy with end of year preparations.
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Reacting to the incident, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) urged the National Assembly to criminalise violence against healthcare workers in the country.
In a statement on Monday by its President, Dr Uche Ojinmah, the NMA said, “The Nigerian Medical Association received with shock and sadness the news of the murder on December 31, 2022, of Dr Iluobe by the relatives of his patient at Oghara, where his practice was based.
“The above scenario being the response of the relatives to the loss of a patient from suspected gunshot injuries can never be justified and has taken violence against doctors and other healthcare workers from injuries to murder.
“It is unbelievable that in the face of a debilitating medical brain drain, the few doctors that patriotically decided to stay back and take care of our fellow citizens are being murdered by the same Nigerians.
“While we sympathize with the family of the patient that was lost, we strongly condemn this murder and call on the Government of Delta State, and the Inspector-General of Police to, as a matter of urgency, to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to book so as to assuage the pain we feel. A man should not be murdered for the selfless act of being on duty on New Year’s Eve.”
While confirming the incident, Bright Edafe, Police Public Relations Officer in Delta, clarified that the crime was committed by cultists and not patient’s relatives.
Edafe said the doctor was shot dead inside his hospital.
