Kpebi (Kobi) Residents Demand Hospital as Doctors Record High Blood Pressure, Malnutrition

By Oluwakemi Kindness

Residents of Kpebi (Kobi) Community in the Asokoro area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have called on the government to establish a functional hospital in their locality after a free medical outreach exposed pressing health challenges among residents.

The outreach, organised on Saturday by Democracy Radio in collaboration with Garki Hospital, offered health checks, treatment, and referrals to hundreds of people.

Doctors at the event reported cases of dangerously high blood pressure, recurring malaria, diarrhoeal diseases, and malnutrition in children.

Some patients were stabilised on-site and referred for urgent follow-up care.

Expressing her gratitude, a beneficiary, Blessing Mytu, lamented the absence of medical facilities in the community.

“We only have chemists here, no hospital. We are begging the government to give us a hospital with medicines,” she said.

Another resident, Abba Goodness, described the difficulties residents face in accessing care.

“There’s no hospital in this part of Socorro, only in another part. Sometimes we cross the river to see a doctor, and during the rains it is very difficult”.  Transport is also costly. If the government can pity us and bring healthcare closer, it will help us,” he appealed.

Community leader, Sarki Audu Kaura, represented by his grandson Timothy Bawa, estimated the community’s population at between 2,000 and 5,000 and said the lone primary health centre is inadequate.

“We appreciate Democracy Radio for bringing free healthcare, but we appeal for more support from government,” he noted.

Medical experts at the event underscored the need for stronger primary healthcare systems.

Dr. Enudi Sylvester of Garki Hospital observed that many residents live with dangerously high blood pressure undiagnosed.

He stressed the importance of well-equipped facilities and adequate personnel rather than relying solely on extension workers.

   Similarly, Dr. Obinwa Uchechukwu advised residents to adopt preventive health practices, highlighting the dangers of unsafe water, poor hygiene, and reliance on unregulated herbal remedies.

She further cautioned teenagers against drug abuse, warning of its links to mental health disorders.

Acting General Manager of Democracy Radio, Uju Nwachukwu, explained that the outreach forms part of the station’s community service efforts, following a similar programme at Padumatu last December.

She indicated plans to sustain the intervention annually but emphasised the need for government’s long-term involvement.

The Asokoro outreach underscores the broader challenges facing rural communities in the FCT, where limited facilities and long travel distances often leave residents dependent on occasional interventions for life-saving healthcare.