Obasanjo
Former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has urged the Federal
Government to sustain the policy which grants access to free healthcare
to people living with albinism who suffer from skin cancer. The policy
was started in 2013 during the Goodluck Jonathan administration.
Chief Obasanjo who said he was alarmed
by the rate at which albinos become affected with cancer, explained that
it was the lack of knowledge and information about albinism that make
albinos particularly vulnerable to the disease.
“I believe that with more information
and knowledge about the proper care of albinos, especially children,
there will be fewer cases of people living with albinism
being vulnerable to skin cancer,’’ he said.
Chief Obasanjo made these comments when a
delegation from The Albino Foundation (TAF) paid a courtesy call on him
at his Ota, Ogun State residence recently. He also accepted the offer of TAF to serve as co-life patron of the foundation, alongside former President Shehu Shagari.
Speaking earlier, the founder of TAF,
Mr. Jake Epelle had briefed the former president on the various
initiatives and programmes of the foundation and its effort to ensure
mainstreaming of albinos in government policies and programmes.
Epelle said that in spite of the effort
of TAF, people living with albinism still suffer serious discriminations
and stigmatization in the society. “Although we have seen marginal
improvement in the treatment of albinos over time, we still face
prejudices borne out of unfounded myths and fears of albinism.
‘’Many albinos are denied right to
education, while others suffer work-place discriminations. We at TAF are
calling on government at all levels to make laws and policies that will
mainstream albinism in all areas of the society,’’ Epelle said.
Obasanjo furthermore pledged to support
the effort of TAF for mainstreaming of albinism and to chair the
International conference on albinism which is slated for Ogun State in
June 2017.
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