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From Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Southeast Zone, has called on the Federal Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire to dissolve without further delay the Board Members of the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN) and also apply appropriate sanctions on the Registrar of the Board, Dr Mark Okeji and the Board Chairman, Hon. A.F.K Bakare.
The human rights organisation said the RBBN Disciplinary Committee also ordered Ugwu to pay the cost of one million naira (N1, 000,000) to offset the incidentals incurred by the Board having been “found guilty of various acts of unethical behaviour, unwholesome acts and infamous conduct in contravention of the code of conduct and ethics of the board”.
The CLO said it gathered that Prof. Anthony Ugwu‘s offence as according to the RBBN Statement was his refusal to honour invitations by the Investigative Panel and Disciplinary Committee of the Board while his offences included “posting of several derogatory remarks about the Board, and his fellow senior colleague and also had circulated an official letter of the Board not addressed to him on social media of which acts the Committee found to be disrespectful, abusive, insulting and unwholesome and unbecoming of a professional”
The CLO shuddered on how the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN) through its Registrar, Dr Mark Okeji and Chairman of the Board, Hon. A.F.K Bakare could act so crude and brazenly against the provisions of the law, due process and judicial processes.
It said its investigations revealed that Prof Anthony Ugwu is up for crucifixion by the Board Chairman and Registrar because of his activism background and struggles over the years to ensure that those at the helm of affairs at the Radiographers Registration body doesn’t use their position to perpetuate abuses and circumvent the system thereby promoting quackery and unprofessionalism into the noble profession of Radiography.
“The events leading to his purported suspension started when he personally took the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN) to court for certifying technicians to dispense ionizing radiation and awarding PGD Sonography to non radiographers.”
“The attempt to regulate technicians was ruled on, not in favour of the RRBN by both Federal High Court and Appeal Courts but irrespective of these rulings, the RRBN went further to design a Gazette in these regards.”
“The Board who has not forgiven Prof. Ugwu for his boldness and effrontery in challenging some of its professional abuses saw a golden opportunity to deal with him after one Mrs Ifeoma Ikete wrote a petition against him alleging professional misconduct following an altercation that ensued between both of them following exchange of words and posting of some materials in a whatsapp platform which both of them belonged to”.
“The Radiographers Registration body acting on a vendetta mission suddenly invited Dr Ugwu to a disciplinary panel against him in Abuja scheduled for 7th June 2022 while he was only served the notice electronically on 5th June 2022, a two day interval”.
“Despite reasons he gave for not being able to attend the disciplinary panel sitting in Abuja and also serving the board Motion on Notice in Court, the board eventually went ahead in its preconceived mission and passed their embarrassing verdict”.
“The CLO having gone through the Act establishing the RBBN and its powers with special emphasis on Section 26(3) Part 1V Section 22, 23 as it relates to discipline and punishment of offenders, can unequivocally state that Dr Anthony Ugwu was not indicted for any professional misconduct “.
The CLO said it still baffles on how a word to word altercation between Mrs Ifeoma Ikete and Dr Anthony Ugwu on a Whatsapp platform can constitute a professional misconduct to the Radiographers Board.
“If Mrs Ikete felt that she has evidence of defamation against Dr Ugwu , she should have channelled her complaints to the law enforcement agents for criminal proceedings or a civil suit to that effect and not a petition to a health related professional body that has no business with the subject matter”.
“The actions of the Board in going ahead to sit on judgement against Dr Ugwu despite a duly served notice of the court against the sitting amounts to abuse and affront on the power of the courts . Their action and the embarrassing purported suspension of Ugwu smacks of arbitrariness, desperation to nail at all cost and an eventual exercise in futility that cannot stand”.
The CLO called on the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation , Boss Mustapha to take appropriate actions and sanction the duo of the Registrar and Chairman of the RBBN Board for their embarrassing actions.
“The Registrar, Dr Mark Okeji should be punished for exhibiting lawlessness to a dizzying height through his utter disregard to court rulings that RRBN cannot regulate technicians which he flouted. The Chairman of the Board, Hon. Bakare on his own part has been accused of allegedly using his power to start the Post Graduate Diploma Ultrasound Programme of RRBN in his private centre in Lagos, an issue that Medical Imaging Society of Nigeria (MISON) reportedly protested.”
“The RRBN Board also acted in contempt of court proceedings at the Fed High Court, Enugu, by setting up a disciplinary panel for Dr Anthony Ugwu. While calling on the Health Minister to set up a high level panel to investigate all the allegations against the principal officers of the board, the Governing Board should be dissolved forthwith and the Registrar suspended to avoid influencing the outcome of investigations. We finally advise all the actors in this inordinate ambition to crush Dr. Anthony Ugwu to retrace their steps for the last time or risk sinking into the mud of professional infamy.” The CLO stated.
