Eighty-three medical and health workers have been abducted, while 16 were killed in Katsina State.
Medical and health workers are avoiding being posted to primary health centres located in areas witnessing terrorist activities in Katsina State.
This has made life difficult for residents of such communities as they lack access to health care.
From leaders of medical and health workers' unions and government officials, PREMIUM TIMES gathered that primary health centres in security-wise vulnerable areas are suffering from a lack of adequate staff.
In the North-west region, terror gangs, locally called bandits, regularly attack rural communities and engage in widespread kidnapping for ransom. Thousands of people have either been killed, abducted, or displaced in the region.
In Katsina State, areas like Jibia, Batsari, Safana, Danmusa, Kurfi, Dutsin Ma, Kankara, Faskari, Funtua, Sabuwa, Dandume, Bakori are some of the worse hit local government areas in terms of terrorists' activities.
83 health workers abducted
Medical and health workers, like other residents of the state, continue to bear the brunt of banditry as a total number of 83 of them were kidnapped while 16 were killed while on duty.
"The situation has become dicey especially in the frontline local government areas because our members (health workers) feel unsafe working in those areas," Bala Mohammed-Sulaiman, the state medical and health workers union chairman, said.
"So far, 83 of our members were abducted out of which 65 of them were released after payment of ransom. Some of them had to sell their farmlands, houses and through contributions from unions and other sources.
"Sixteen of our members were killed by the terrorists so far. Some had injuries. Even yesterday, one of our members was killed in Dandume Local Government Area. He is not even part of these statistics," Mr Mohammed-Sulaiman said.
The health workers' leader said a member of the union has been in captivity for four years. "We don't know whether he is alive or not."
Mr Mohammed-Sulaiman said medical and health workers who are indigenes of such areas with security issues are asked to stay in their immediate communities to help their people. This, he said, is done to bridge lapses in staffing of the health centres.
He said in some of the health centres where 30 staff members are supposed to work, one hardly finds more than four workers due to the security situation.
Residents speak
PREMIUM TIMES spoke to residents of some of the affected communities, who all spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of risk of becoming targets of terrorist attacks, and said the situation was taking a toll on their lives.
"We have two health workers who come from Batsari town. Once it's 3 m., they leave our community and return to Batsari because the road is not safe," a resident of the Dan Tsuntsu community said.
Last year, terrorists burnt down a health care centre in Shimfida, a community in Jibia area. Another one was burnt down in the Batsari area.
"Ever since this hospital was burnt down by bandits, we have been left with no option. We've tried in our capacity to see that we've even a temporary health centre with no success," a youth leader in Shimfida said.
A resident of Mabai in the Kankara area told PREMIUM TIMES that not only health workers but others including teachers are running away from their communities.
"I don't blame them because it's even risky for one to even ply the road from Kankara to our communities. Major communities here especially Kakumi, Mabai, and Ruwan Godiya are all seen as no-go areas for teachers and health workers. It has not been easy as our people are now forced to go to Kankara or other areas to access health care but even at that at great risk because the roads are not safe too," the anonymous Mabai resident said.
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Government reacts
Officials of the health ministry in the state refused to speak over the issue when a PREMIUM TIMES reporter visited the State Secretariat on Friday.
The Information and Culture Commissioner, Salisu Bala, said the incumbent administration would continue to prioritise the healthcare sector.
"We'll restore the health care sector of the state by God's grace, because we're working towards achieving that. As you know, the state government has taken measures to protect the people of the state from terrorists.
"We've seen how the state government recently created the community watch corps to complement the efforts of conventional security agents in the vulnerable areas," he said in a DW Hausa interview.
Mr Bala-Zango expressed confidence that medical and health workers who are avoiding their duty posts would return in a "limited period of time".
