Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State, on Wednesday, presented 32-seater buses, one each, to the Colleges of Nursing and Midwifery Sciences in Itigidi, Calabar, and Ogoja, a move he described as part of his administration’s investment in preventive health and training of the next generation of healthcare professionals.
The presentation, which took place at the Governor’s Office, Calabar, further underscored Otu’s transformative “People First” agenda in the health sector.
Governor Otu noted that preventive health is central to reducing the high cost of medical care and sustaining wellness among the population. “We discovered that the only way to cut costs is to make sure our people stay healthy. Prevention is cheaper than cure, and we are committed to strengthening that approach,” he said.
The governor also disclosed plans to establish a “medical village” in one of the northern senatorial district hospitals, designed to improve access to quality care while serving as a training hub for nurses and doctors. He emphasized that training and retraining of health professionals remain key priorities to ensure continuity of service.
Otu further revealed that the State Health Insurance Scheme would continue to receive boost, making healthcare more affordable and reducing the burden of out-of-pocket spending.
Receiving the buses on behalf of the institutions, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Henry Egbe Ayuk, described the donation as “empirical evidence” of the administration’s commitment to health sector reforms.
“Just few years ago, we had only one accredited training institution, the College of Nursing at Itigidi. Today, by the governor’s vision and support, we now have four functional and accredited colleges across the state. This is not because there was excess money, but because the governor challenged us to prove to the world what can be achieved with the little we have,” Ayuk said.
He explained that nursing and midwifery students conduct about 80% of their clinical training outside the classroom, making mobility critical. “It is not just about buses, it is about ensuring that our students can move from one location to another for their practical work. These vehicles will serve that essential need,” the Commissioner noted.
Ayuk expressed gratitude on behalf of the colleges, assuring that the buses would be used strictly for the purposes they were provided. He also appealed to the governor to extend similar support to the College of Nursing in Obudu.
