An open letter to Trovan Victims Forum
However, we are alarmed at the snail speed of the administration of this compensation thus far. If the justice intended by the settlement terms between the government of Kano State and Pfizer is delayed, then it is as well, being denied. That is an irrefutable axiom. As an organization committed to assisting people break out […]
However, we are alarmed at the snail speed of the administration of this compensation thus far. If the justice intended by the settlement terms between the government of Kano State and Pfizer is delayed, then it is as well, being denied. That is an irrefutable axiom. As an organization committed to assisting people break out from cycles of deprivation and ill health, we hereby affirm our more than passing interest in the resolution of this unwholesome state of affairs. In furtherance of this, we would like to constructively engage you and TVF on how to resolve the impasse. We would normally join in a bandwagon of any organization that sets out to represent the wider interests of the downtrodden. However, based on our analysis of the issues surrounding the implementation of the compensation package, we are constrained to call into question, the conduct of Alhaji Mustapha Maisikeli on the saga and to raise questions about the interests that you are pursuing.
We are concerned about your (Maisikeli’s) tendency to frustrate efforts to pay compensation to the six members of TVF who passed the DNA test. Indeed, we feel quite uncomfortable with your seeming stranglehold on other members of TVF, to the extent that no other members of the group are able to raise his or her individual voice. You are taking undue advantage of the fact that most of the people affected are largely illiterate. We frown at the prospects of anyone trying to amass personal fortunes from the misfortunes of others through newspapers and online blogs.
While purporting to be the leader of the Trovan Victims Forum (TVF), we feel that you have, in fact, been a cog in the wheel of speedy administration of compensation to the real victims of the trial for the following reasons: We have established that of the tests conducted, many of the 192 claimants under the aegis of TVF did not pass the DNA test. This includes some persons close to you who are believed to be victims of the 1996 trials.
We are at pains to understand why you have been hot and cold over the use of DNA for the determination of claims. We are aware that parties to the dispute agreed in July, 2009 to this method, considering that 547 persons had come forward, whereas the study covered only 200 people. On the one hand, you submitted to this method, as evidenced by the 192-person list of claimants submitted by TVF. However, when, as has been established, some persons failed the test, you turned round to try to discredit the method all over again. Such prevarication is unbecoming of one who claims to be representing selfless interests. Having received such compensations, you led your TVF members to rejoin the DNA testing programme managed by the Trustees of the Healthcare/Meningitis Trust Fund, an independent body made up of some of the most respectable Nigerians. We are also constrained to question your reasons for ending your legal action only after TVF reached an agreement with Pfizer in February, 2011 after it received about N163.2 million(US$960,000) on behalf of your 192 TVF members, in addition to other compensations. You are probably calculating that since a new government has come on the saddle, you can confuse Governor Kwankwaso with your activities. On behalf of the authentic victims of the Trovan Trial, we insist that you stop being a stumbling block to the payment of compensation to deserving claimants.
Tajudeen A. Mohammed is the Zonal Coordinator (North West), Improved Action for Community Transformation (ImpACT), 8 Nura Imam Street, Tudun Wada, Kaduna; e-mail: [email protected]