Kano deputy governor rejects report on funding of eye surgery

Aminu Gwarzo, the deputy governor of Kano State, has refuted a report that appeared in an online daily and said he broke his pledge to compensate 52 underprivileged patients for eye surgery.

The report was referred to as “misleading” and “unfounded” in a press release released on Thursday by Ibrahim Shuaibu, the Deputy Governor’s Press Secretary.

He clarified that no such pledge had ever been made by the Deputy Governor and that the reporter had claimed to have found his knowledge from a September 9, 2023, tweet on the Deputy Governor’s old, unverified X handle.

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All attempts to get in contact with Deputy Chief Press Secretary Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu, the reporter said, were unsuccessful.

Garba corrected the record by stating that there was no formal news announcement proving the Deputy Governor had paid for the impoverished patients’ eye surgeries, which rendered the probe baseless.

Ibrahim pointed out that the only news release that came from his office said, “Over 500 Benefit from KNSG Free Mobile Eye Screening in Gwarzo LGA,” and it was dated July 10, 2023.

He said, quoting from the press release:

“KNSG Free Mobile Eye Screening in Gwarzo LGA Benefits Over 500 People”

Over 500 residents of Gwarzo Local Government Area (LGA) and its neighbouring areas have benefited from free mobile eye tests thanks to a joint initiative between the Makkah Specialist Eye Hospital and the Kano State Primary Healthcare and Management Board.

“The mobile eye screening programme aims to identify and address eye-related health conditions among the residents of Gwarzo LGA,” Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu, the Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor of Kano State, said in a statement provided to reporters.

A total of 536 patients had screenings performed throughout the campaign, according to Kamilu Saleh Dokadawa, the Kano State Coordinator for Primary Eye Care.

Out of them, 162 individuals were found to have cataracts and were recommended for surgical intervention. A total of 69 people underwent glaucoma screenings, and those who needed more care were referred as appropriate.

As a complimentary gift to the residents of Gwarzo LGA, the Makkah Specialist Eye Hospital kindly supplied 70 sets of spectacles and 130 eye drops to further support the project, according to Kamilu.

“Thanking the Kano State Government, led by Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and his deputy, Comr. Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, for their prompt intervention and dedication to the community’s well-being, two screening recipients, Aminu Adnan and Ruqayyah Salihu, both of whom reside in Gwarzo Local Government Area, expressed their gratitude.

On July 10, 2023, IBRAHIM GARBA SHUAIBU Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor of Kano State

Garba continued by saying that there is no connection between the Deputy Governor and the patients’ sponsorship. considering that all he did was assist in getting the victims from Gwarzo LGA to the Makkah Specialist Eye Hospital in Kano Metropolis.

Ibrahim urged the public, however, to ignore the false story since it is the work of petty individuals who wish to harm the Deputy Governor’s well-deserved image as a man of exceptional integrity.

Garba restated the state government’s commitment to promoting the welfare and economic advancement of Kano State residents.