The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, has assured the Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri that he would assist them in their bid to upgrade the Holy Rosary School of Nursing, Pharmacy and Laboratory Sciences Emekuku, Owerri to a university.
He said that he got to know about the quest to upgrade the institution to a University of Health Sciences from Archbishop Lucius Ugoji, recently when he visited him in Owerri, the seat of the Archdiocese.
Obi said, “I became very much interested in it as it concerned health and that is why I gave the Archbishop my firm promise that I will visit the institution to see things for myself.”
Obi, who gave an N10 million cheque to support the management of the health institution, stated this at Emekuku in Owerri North Local Government Area of Imo State.
He regretted that the present government in the country was not doing much to support and encourage the development of schools and students in the country.
Obi, however, stated that the growth and development of any country were measured by the Human Development Index, adding that investing in schools and students would cover that imbalance.
He said, “I think that we are not doing any favour by educating the students, but we are only investing in them for a greater and brighter future for the country. I am particularly interested in nursing services and health care. This is because, in the hospital, the most valued personnel is the nurse. The doctors can do whatever thing, but the owners of the patients are the nurses.”
Obi, who said that as the governor of Anambra State, he assisted in the development of Schools of Midwifery, Iyienu, Adazi and Charles Borromeo, Onitsha, stated that the poor could not get adequate proper health care.
He thanked Ugorji and the management of the school for their efforts in flying the flag higher and pledged to be in the forefront to assist them achieve their objective.
Ugorji commended Obi for the visit, describing him as a role model and a simple man.
He further said that Obi’s visit was timely, as it coincided with the Catholic feast of SS Peter and Paul. He prayed to God to grant him mercy in his endeavours and protect him in all his dealings.
