ICPC launches investigation into stolen 13,350 diapers at Kebbi primary health centre

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has vowed to unravel the alleged missing 13,350 diapers for antenatal care at a Primary Health Centre in the Sambawa community, Kebbi.

The commission said it would investigate the criminal conduct and bring the culprits to book.

The chairman of ICPC, Musa Adamu, said this at a one-day conference organised by the ICPC in Abuja, on Thursday.

Mr Adamu said, “Recently, the Sambawa community in Kebbi state sent a petition to us regarding missing antenatal care items for pregnant women and newborn babies donated to a healthcare facility.

“Our preliminary investigation indicated that the missing diapers allocated to Sambawa Primary Healthcare Centre are 13,350 pieces, while the investigation by Kebbi State Primary Healthcare Agency puts it at 3,466.”

He said that though two staff members of the Sambawa Primary Healthcare Centre, a male and a female, were indicted for missing items, the commission intended to unravel the criminal conduct and bring the culprits to book.

Mr Adamu added that communities and civil society organisations were becoming more interested in tackling corruption in the health sector.

The ICPC boss said that the anti-graft was putting in place measures to ensure corruption-free primary healthcare delivery in the country.

The anti-graft chief also mentioned that the agency organised the conference, which was part of the efforts to enlist and foster public support in combating corruption in the nation.

According to him, the conference is specifically organised to stimulate discussions to help improve service delivery without windows for corrupt tendencies in the health sector.

“This has become necessary considering the sector’s critical nature and its role in ensuring a healthy society at all levels. The commission’s choice of Primary Health Care in the Federal Capital Territory as the pilot for the nationwide conversation is to create a comprehensive template that can be replicated in all the six geopolitical zones of the federation.

“Participants were carefully drawn from community healthcare stakeholders to have a holistic and collaborative approach to improving the effectiveness of primary healthcare service delivery,” he said.