There is palpable anger, anxiety, mistrust and growing discontent between the management board of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC) in Ile-Ife, Osun State and members of the hospital community, especially the body of senior doctors of the institution.

This is a fallout from the short listing process carried out by the establishment sub-committee of the board a couple of weeks earlier for the appointment of a substantive chief medical director for the hospital, where a number of frontliners believed that they were schemed out of the race for the top post.

Chairman of the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, OAUTHC chapter, the umbrella body of consultants of the institution, Professor Yomi Okunola, described the process as strange to universal human resource rules and norms and a deliberate attempt to scheme out some individuals from the race.

According to him, “the association received petitions from a number of aggrieved applicants for the post who alleged that they were deliberately screened out, and when we investigated, we found some clear merit and good reason in their submissions.”

He described the shortlisting process as a deliberate attempt to cherry-pick contestants and to also disenfranchise some members that are eligible.

The association condemned in totality the entire process and demanded that the selection process be carried out at a neutral venue by an impartial team, preferably from the Federal Ministry of Health.

“There are still serious doubts over the legality, capacity and propriety of the board to conduct the interview due to the tenure issue.

“The association still believes that all the 10 applicants are our members and are eminently qualified for the post, but the entire process must be seen to be fair, just, transparent and credible,” he added.

The post became vacant on March 30th, 2022 following the expiration of the tenure of the erstwhile chief medical director of the institution, Professor Victor Adetiloye. (Nigerian Tribune)

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