More that 300 residents of Ikpokiri community in Ogu-Bolo Local Government Area of Rivers state benefited from a free medical service organised by Nigerian Naval College and Nigerian Navy Medical Centre Onne on Saturday 3 December 2022.
The outreach also afforded residents health education and counseling, blood tests, visual acuity checks and free prescription glasses, dental health services, as well as free medications.
Some of the essential drugs distributed included anti-malaria, antibiotics, aches of all kinds, ulcer, hypertension, arthritis, worms and stomach discomfort.
The Commandant Nigerian Naval College Onne, Commodore Pakiribo Anabraba while giving his opening remarks stated that Medical Rhapsody was one of the series of Civil-Military Relations Activities packaged by the College to foster and consolidate the already existing cordial relationship between the College and its neighbouring communities.
“We have a Chief of Naval Staff that has zero tolerance for maritime crimes. He wants the maritime environment to be completely free of crime and criminality. And so to achieve this, naval units and establishments must positively impact her host communities.”
He added that the the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral AZ Gambo has provided all the resources needed to carry out this mandate in line with his Strategic Directive.
Also at the event was the Commander Navy Medical Centre Onne, Navy Captain Aliyu Oyeneyin who said that drugs would be given to patients suffering from malaria, diabetes and hypertension and that insecticides treated mosquito nets would be distributed to pregnant women.
“There are some people that cannot be taken care of because of the peculiarity of their medical conditions, they have been given grace of between now and end of February to avail themselves at our medical centre for treatment. Registration will be at a very discounted cost to them”, he said.
Reacting to the development, Chief Livingstone Worika, a member of Council of Chiefs, commended the Chief of the Naval Staff for the gesture and prayed God to bless him.
Elder Golden Chuku, a beneficiary who complained of waist pain, expressed joy at the medical outreach after being attended to and pleaded that the Navy should continue such gesture.
