Staff, residents complain as newly renovated Oyo health centre rapidly deteriorates

As the officer-in-charge of the Sabo Primary Health Centre, Matron Akande Akinlabi has witnessed firsthand the transformation of the facility she has diligently served for years. However, the excitement of a recent renovation has now turned into a troubling reality.

“The renovation is a good one and I find it commendable, however, I think the government should look into the status now and help intervene so as to ensure our delivery of health services is better,” she said as she fanned herself with a paper.

Sabo Health Care Centre was commissioned in 2004 by the then-governor of Oyo State, Adewolu Ladoja. It was meant to serve an estimated 5,000 population in the Sabo community. The state of the health centre has been in disrepair over years until in 2021, when N22.5 million was allocated for the renovation and expansion of the health centre. The project was aimed at improving healthcare services for the local community.

The project, which commenced in 2021 and was completed in 2022, included the addition of a pharmacy, a borehole, and a labour room, among other facilities. However, less than a year after its completion, the quality of the work done is under intense scrutiny as staff and community members are increasingly concerned about the quality of the renovation, with numerous issues surfacing less than a year after the project’s completion.

During a recent visit by UDEME to the health centre, noticeable flaws were evident. Peeling paint on the walls and malfunctioning ceiling fans are among the most glaring issues, raising doubts about the quality of materials used and the overall execution of the project.

Mrs Akinlabi, who runs the health centre, expressed her mixed feelings as she questioned the quality of the work done. 

“There are improvements. We had one ward for both male and female patients, but now we have separate rooms for each. However, the quality of the renovation brings questions. The peeling walls and broken fans is something of concern for us. We expected better quality work given the amount allocated for the project,” she said.

Salisu Mikhail, head of the Ward Development Committee (WDC) of the health centre, pointed out some issues with the building’s exterior.

“The fencing of the health centre and the tiling are part of the renovation. However, the peeling walls make us question the quality of materials used. In less than a year, we are already seeing these problems,” he said, pointing to the peeling walls of the fencing at the back of the clinic.

Mrs. Akinlabi further discussed the issue of the non-functional fans. “We had ceiling fans before the renovation, but standing fans were provided after. They stopped working after a few months. Despite multiple repairs, we eventually had to pack them up and store them because they couldn’t be fixed,” she said.

Jahman Bawa, a regular visitor to the health centre, shared his experience.

“The renovation was commendable, and I come here often for treatment. However, the waiting room is uncomfortable without a fan, especially in this hot weather. It would have been better if there was a fan here,” he said.

Corroborating Mr Bawa’s experience, Isah Muhammad, a patient who is just convalescing, said he left his bed to sit in the reception due to the heat in the room.

“I am just getting better and I have to leave my bed in the ward to sit here and get some air. I was unconscious when I was brought here but I am getting better now,” said Mr Isah. 

Speaking to UDEME, Lawal Adetayo, a civil engineer, explained that the peeling walls might be a result of moisture infiltration, commonly known as seepage. “When renovating, you should test structural integrity before starting the work. Moisture, or seepage, might be coming from the ground. A damp-proof membrane (DPM) should have been used during construction to prevent this,” he said.

Adetayo, while elaborating on other potential causes, said looking at the picture of the building, described the work done at the health centre as “renopainting”. 

“The problem could arise from the plastering stage too, where the previous plastering wasn’t properly removed before reapplying. The surface needs to be rough and dry before painting,” he said. “Additionally, painting during rainy conditions or improper paint mixing could also cause peeling. It seems emulsion paint was used here, and if too much water was added, that could lead to these issues. A proper renovation is needed to correct this, or else it will keep peeling off.”

Efforts to reach Yaro Anthony Siyako, the Senator from the area who facilitated the project, proved abortive as calls went unanswered and emails received no response.

Speaking to UDEME during a visit to her office, Obafunmilayo Enitan, spokesperson of the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, the supervising agency for the project, could not provide sufficient details about the project.

“We don’t have much information about the project at Sabo because we literally handed it off the moment it got awarded to the contractor,” she said.

When reached, Vivian Ochem, a project supervisor with Dominant Engineering Limited, the firm awarded the project, blamed the environment for the peeling walls.

“Sabo is not the only place we worked on, and we don’t get calls from other places. The cause of that is foundational and what we did is only remodeling. We did not do any work with the foundation where we could have done the damp-proof membrane to prevent such,” said Ms Ochem.

She also blamed officials at the health center for the nonfunctional fans at the facility, for the “careless usage” of the appliance.

“It was the same fans we supplied to other places we worked on and they worked perfectly. The capacitors of the fans as usual and it is due to the way they use it,” She said. “I have been there before at night and they left it working when there was no light, I had to switch it off when they brought the light. You can’t be using a fan like that and expect the fan not to be faulty.

However, officials at Sabo Primary Health Centre disagree with Ms Ochem, insisting that the fans stopped working a few months after they were installed.

“We attempted fixing them with our own money more than once and gave up when they were not working,” said Mrs Akinlabi.

As the contractor and officials at Sabo health centre continue to trade blame, the condition of the facility continues to deteriorate, sparking questions over the recent renovation work funded with taxpayers money.