A survivor of the crash involving doctors from Ekiti State, Dr. Ekundare Folu, has revealed that officers of the Federal Roads Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Nigeria Police demanded and collected money before taking them to the hospital.
Folu, who is the Chairman of National Association of General and Government Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) in Ekiti State, made this known in a post on his Facebook wall.
Six Ekiti doctors and their driver lost their lives last weekend in a fatal motor accident along Abuja-Kaduna Expressway.
Reacting to the comments of the Sector Head of Operations of FRSC, Deputy Corps Commander
Salisu Galadunci on the accident, Dr. Folu said they were unfortunate.
He said, “This is an FRSC that got to scene of the accident more than 40 minutes after the accident.
“This is an FRSC that were reluctant take us to the hospital claiming they don’t have fuel and didn’t budge until one of the injured promised to buy fuel for them.
“The Deputy Corps Commander was not at the scene of the accident. Neither himself nor any representative of his spoke to any of the people in the vehicle, six of whom, including myself survived.
“The Deputy Corps Commander did not even see the vehicle either at the scene of the accident or at the police station. How he jumped to that conclusion is beyond me.”
The NAGGMDP chairman said Galadunci’s comments were insult to his dead colleagues and a slap on the survivors.
He said further, “For his information this is not a driver we picked off the road to take us for the journey. This is a man that has been working with us for more than 4 years.
“He is indirectly telling the world that a bus of 12 doctors including several senior consultants could not control a driver we employed and pay salaries to.
“I was in the same vehicle sitting in the row behind the driver and I checked the speedometer from time to time.
“The bus also makes a beeping sound once the speed exceeds 110km/hr. Let me state categorically that the bus driver was not speeding.
“The FRSC are probably only trying to justify their intention to sell their speed limiting device to Nigerians hence associating every possible accident to excessive speeding.
“And it is sad that they would even attempt to use such a sad event to do such. Even the police would not convey the bodies to the mortuary in their van until we parted with N4,000.
“I personally dropped N3,000 but the police officer rejected it dropping the money on their vehicle until the NMA chairman, Dr. Akinbote added N1,500.
The second police vehicle that conveyed those of us unhurt and our luggage to join the others to the hospital also had to be tipped with N3,500 for black market fuel I paid for.”
He commended Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti for his care and support as well as the Senator representing Doka Local Government in Kaduna for deeming it fit to visit us in the hospital.
“The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) Kaduna was also wonderful. Thank you so much. CMD Neuropsychiatric Hospital, God bless you. All others who helped, assisted or visited us in Kaduna, thank you.”
The NMA had on Monday released the identity of the Ekiti doctors and driver that were involved in the accident.
According to a statement by NMA President, Dr. Kayode Obembe and Secretray, Dr.Adewunmi Alayaki, six of doctors and a driver were confirmed dead and their names include:
1. Dr. Alex Akinyele – Secretary NMA Ekiti, Federal Teaching Hospital (FTH), Ido Ekiti;
2. Dr. Tunde Aladesanmi – General Surgeon, FTH, Ido Ekiti;
3. Dr. O.J. Taiwo – Anatomic Pathologist, Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti;
4. Dr. Ogunseye J.B – National Association of General and Government Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) National Secretary, Hospital Management Board (HMB), Ekiti;
5. Dr. Olajide .O – Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), EKSUTH President;
6. Dr. Atolani Adeniyi – Secretary NAGGMDP, Ekiti State
7. Mr. Ajibola – NMA Ekiti Driver
