• Main News
  • About Us
  • Contact
Premium Times Opinion
Friday, August 12, 2022
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight
No Result
View All Result
Premium Times Opinion
Home Editorial

EDITORIAL: Buhari Must Act Now To End the Sordid Affair At NHIS

by Premium Times
October 29, 2018
Reading Time: 3 mins read
4


As usual, the government has handled the saga of the executive secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Usman Yusuf, with spectacular lack of tact, or common sense.

A timeline of the debacle reads like a poorly scripted melodrama, and comedy of errors.

In just over a year, beginning from July 2017, Mr. Yusuf has been investigated by the Senate, suspended by the minister of Health, applauded by the House of Representatives which demanded his reinstatement, indicted by a ministerial panel which recommended the extension of his suspension, recalled abruptly by the Presidency, and accused of investing N25 billion of the Scheme’s fund inappropriately. Also, he has been rubbished by an interim management for alleged corruption and highhandedness, charged with padding the agency’s budget and misleading the new governing board, queried and again suspended, following which he vacated his suspension by storming the NHIS office with armed police. Mr. Yusuf has announced that he will no longer be obeying the minister or any board, and is again being investigated by the House of Reps.

Expectedly, little work is being done in the agency these days as workers and unions range themselves on opposing sides of the divide, with each group threatening mayhem if its side is not favoured in the eventual resolution.

It is easy to fall into the temptation of taking sides in this matter, of blaming the secretary and his supporters in the Presidency for enthroning unruliness, and championing nepotism. And whatever the merits of his case, at the very least, Mr. Yusuf has made questionable financial transactions and behaved with such arrogance as to make it impossible for him to remain in his position without further compromising the scheme.

However, he should not take all the blame. We must spread the blame around, and there is no shortage of deserving candidates.
The minister has serially been overruled and his attempt to discipline a subordinate thwarted, to the extent that riots frequently break out among staff in opposing camps.

He cannot therefore claim firm control of his agency, and his president has shown little faith in his judgment and less care for his honour, making his position almost untenable. The longer he tolerates such spite, the longer he erodes whatever altruistic motives he may claim for remaining in that office.

The Governing Council of the NHIS was supposed to bring policy direction to a place ruled by fractious groups but it has hardly succeeded in that regard. It naively approved for Mr Yusuf to invest N30 billion in securities only to turn back and accuse the man of misleading them. Had they read the Act setting up the Scheme and the fundamental principle of the Treasury Single Account, they might have avoided such pitfalls.

In a statement by the interim management set up to oversee the affairs of the Scheme during Mr. Yusuf’s suspension, a management that is itself now facing accusations of fraud, “the infraction alleged against us pales significantly compared to the enormous and grievous infractions that have been committed by Prof. Yusuf in terms of volume of funds involved…”

In sum, there are no heroes in this fight, only degrees of culpability. And the most culpable has to be the Presidency, which has again failed to demonstrate leadership.

It has conducted itself in a manner that has opened it to allegations of nepotism and crass incompetence. On the eve of a major election, this sort of failure of governance can hardly be expected to earn it more votes.

In the end, Nigeria is again the loser as a scheme meant to help make quality healthcare affordable to the people is again scuttled by bad administration.

Yet, something may yet be salvaged from this messy affair. President Buhari must abandon his habitual silence on matters of national import and restore sanity in the running of this critical health scheme.

If there is ever a time when silence is not golden, this is certainly it. Not to interfere is to condone the national disgrace that passes for governance at the NHIS.

Photo credit: Champion Newspapers Nigeria Limited.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
  • More
  • Pocket
  • Share on Tumblr

Related

Previous Post

Is Infobesity Curable?, By Adebayo Adeyinka Yusuf

Next Post

Federal Republic of Inequality and Oppression, By ‘Tope Fasua

Related Posts

EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19
Editorial

EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19

January 28, 2021
Monetary Policy and Barriers To Doing Business, By Uddin Ifeanyi
Editorial

EDITORIAL: Unearthing the Cogent Lessons In the NESG-CBN Economic Policy Imbroglio

September 16, 2020
The Corona Virus Challenge, Nigeria and Other Responses, By Reuben Abati
Editorial

EDITORIAL: COVID-19: Calling On Nigeria’s Billionaires and Religious Leaders To Step Up

March 27, 2020
EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism
Editorial

EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism

December 14, 2019
EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria
Editorial

EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria

October 16, 2019
EDITORIAL: President Buhari Must Release Sowore Now!
Editorial

EDITORIAL: President Buhari Must Release Sowore Now!

September 23, 2019
Next Post
Federalism: The Decentralisation of Electricity Transmission In Nigeria, By Ugochukwu Amasike

Federal Republic of Inequality and Oppression, By 'Tope Fasua

Why Lai Mohammed Must Be Fired Immediately, By Femi Aribisala

President Buhari's Non-Existent School Certificate, By Femi Aribisala

Editorial

  • EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19

    EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19

  • EDITORIAL: Unearthing the Cogent Lessons In the NESG-CBN Economic Policy Imbroglio

    EDITORIAL: Unearthing the Cogent Lessons In the NESG-CBN Economic Policy Imbroglio

  • EDITORIAL: COVID-19: Calling On Nigeria’s Billionaires and Religious Leaders To Step Up

    EDITORIAL: COVID-19: Calling On Nigeria’s Billionaires and Religious Leaders To Step Up

  • EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism

    EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism

  • EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria

    EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria

Subscribe to our Opinion articles via email

Enter your email address to get notifications of new opinion articles as they are published.

Join 526,543 other subscribers

Most Popular

  • The Bad Consequences and Dangers of Adultery and Fornication (Zina) In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
    The Bad Consequences and Dangers of Adultery and Fornication (Zina) In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
  • The Importance Of Keeping Secrets In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
    The Importance Of Keeping Secrets In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
  • Showing Gratitude To Allah For His Bounties, Blessings and Favours, By Murtadha Gusau
    Showing Gratitude To Allah For His Bounties, Blessings and Favours, By Murtadha Gusau
  • Islam and the Conditions For Marrying More Than One Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
    Islam and the Conditions For Marrying More Than One Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
  • You Will Be Held Responsible On What Happened To Your Children!, By Murtadha Gusau
    You Will Be Held Responsible On What Happened To Your Children!, By Murtadha Gusau
  • The Women Prohibited For Men To Marry In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
    The Women Prohibited For Men To Marry In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
  • The Qualities of a Good Leader In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
    The Qualities of a Good Leader In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook

Podcasts

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

  • Main News
  • About Us
  • Contact

© 2022 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight

© 2022 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
 

Loading Comments...