20 suffer exhaustion as logistics mar Osun pensioners verification
On Monday, the verification of pensioners in Osun State was hampered by a lack of people and a logistical difficulty.
About 20 pensioners who attended the verification in Osogbo, the state capital, had to be attended to by medical staff at the location of the operation due to weariness.
The senior folks attacked the location around the state very early to get authenticated and waited for the consultant in charge of the activity to arrive with her staff.
When the exercise began, the sheer number of retirees waiting to be captured overwhelmed the few personnel in charge.
The slow speed of the exercise, which irritated the pensioners, heightened tensions, and the situation deteriorated when some of the seniors, who could no longer withstand the rigor, became exhausted and needed to be attended to by paramedics from the Osun Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System.
The activity was later halted by the State Assembly Speaker, Wale Egbedun, who hurried to the spot.
Some of the pensioners who spoke with our correspondent could not hide their unhappiness and requested that the exercise be decentralized.
According to Pa Thomas Olagunju of Ipetu-Ijesa, Mrs Mary Iluyomade of Ikirun, and Mr Akin Ajasa of Oyan, who talked to The TalkTalk Nigeria, they came at the location before 7:30 a.m. but were not attended to on time.
"I left Ipetu-Ijesa with about ten other people," Olagunju, who could barely walk, claimed. Since 7:30 a.m., we have been here. Nonetheless, we were unable to complete the activity. I submitted all of my paperwork, but I was unable to be verified using the biometric capture technology. I'll have to make the trip again.
"The consultant should consider decentralisation." The pressure is too great. There are not enough staff members to accommodate this high amount. Many of us were fatigued and needed to be seen here. People in wheelchairs were forced to come here, as did those who couldn't see.
When contacted, Elizabeth Arowosafe, Head of Operations, Osun Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System, stated that 20 pensioners suffering from tiredness had been treated and discharged.
"At least about 20 people were attended to by O' Ambulance personnel," she claimed. They had not lost consciousness, but they were weak and fatigued due to their age and insufficient strength.
"The place was crammed. Tiredness resulted from the prolonged standing. We attended to those cases by testing their blood pressure. There was no collapse occurrence."
Speaking about the difficulties encountered during the exercise, the governor's spokeswoman, Olawale Rasheed, told the pensioners that the governor, Ademola Adeleke, wished them well.
Rasheed stated, "The governor will never do anything that will disadvantage pensioners, and in this particular case, we can see the immediate intervention of the government through the Speaker who came to quickly stop the verification exercise." The governor has requested an investigation into what happened, what caused it, and who is to blame, and I want to assure you that corrective action is being taken."
