Open Letter to Jigawa State Governor -By Najeeb Maigatari

Your excellency, I hope this letter finds you in good health. It could be recalled that in October 2024 I wrote an open letter to you where I draw your attention to the unfortunate events surrounding healthcare system in Jigawa state, and urged you to take a decisive action and declare state of emergency on health in order to put a stop to the unending Japa syndrome, a trend that puts the entire system at the brink of collapse.

Ever since, the proactive measures you have taken and the good policies you have implemented (on health) have been, to say the least, commendable. A step in the right direction that would help revamp the healthcare sector of the state and instill confidence among health professionals and the citizens in general.

For instance, in an unprecedented move to revolutionize healthcare system in the state, his excellency had in April 2025 approved the establishment of “Jigawa Medical village”- the first of its kind in Northern Nigeria- which include among others a specialized cardiac center, a diagnostic center, and a cryogenic oxygen plant aimed at enhancing advanced and comprehensive health services to the citizens of Jigawa and its surrounding states.

Furthermore, the governor has also come up with some convincing policies that would help address the problems I highlighted in my letter; from poor workers’ remuneration and welfare to acute shortage of manpower and inadequate facilities in Hospitals across the State.

In view of the foregoing, he implemented a hundred percent increase in minimum wage to all civil servants in all sectors across the state, in addition to equating allowances to that of the federal scale (or in some cases even more) for all healthcare workers. More so, he recruited additional staffs to help fill the gap in the shortage of manpower in hospitals at all levels across the state. Plus, equipping newly established- as well as the already existing- medical facilities with state-of-the-art equipments. Your excellency, these are all laudable achievements.

Most praiseworthy of his achievements is the establishment of “free Dialysis centers”in all the five provinces of the state: viz Gumel, Dutse, Hadejia, Ringim and Kazaure; where people suffering from end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) will be provided with free dialysis services. In addition, he also subsidized medications for people suffering from other chronic diseases like Hypertension, Diabetes, Sickle Cell Disease and etc. Another landmark unprecedented in the history of Jigawa State.

As a testament to his outstanding accomplishments in healthcare sector, in August last year, the governor bagged the prestigious “best performing governor in primary healthcare in Nigeria” award from the House of Representatives committee on healthcare services; for his immense contributions to the revitalization of primary healthcare services in Jigawa State.

Your excellency, having mentioned some of your admirable achievements, it’s worth noting however that there is still need for the domestication of Medical Residency Training Funds (MRTF) in Jigawa State- one key aspect I mentioned in my previous letter. Doing so will allow the training of medical professionals in various specialties who would later serve various roles in the newly established medical centers in Jigawa Medical village and other facilities in the State.

Your excellency, the Jigawa Medical community salute you and your cabinet members especially the Honorable Commissioner of Health, Dr. Muhammad Abdullahi Kainuwa, and other Directors at the State Ministry of Health; for your courageous efforts and the novel ideas you have employed geared toward improving and strengthening our healthcare system.

And I for one, having wrote an open letter before, now feel morally compelled to write this and put the record straight and hail your great accomplishments on health. You have indeed taken our healthcare system to a new height. You have built an enduring legacy that would be remembered for generations to come. May God reward you abundantly.

Long live Jigawa State.
Long live the people of Jigawa State!

Najeeb Maigatari is a Medical Doctor and writes from Dutse, Jigawa State.