Dausara: A town close to metropolis, far from development

    Dausara is a town in Ungoggo local government area of Kano state with population of about 10, 000 people. Despite being situated few kilometers from the state metropolis, the community is lacking basic social amenities. There is no good road linking the town to the city,  no portable water supply and the only […]

 

 

Dausara is a town in Ungoggo local government area of Kano state with population of about 10, 000 people. Despite being situated few kilometers from the state metropolis, the community is lacking basic social amenities.

There is no good road linking the town to the city,  no portable water supply and the only health facility in the community is in bad condition, Kano Chronicle, reports.

Our reporter who visited the community observed that, a journey to the town which ordinarily can take less than an hour, a visitor to the area now may possibly spend more than two hours due to the bad condition of the road.

The road leading to Dausara community is like a road that leads to nowhere, as gully erosion has devastated and rendered it to a level of not being fit for human and vehicular movements, our reporter, observed.

Many pregnant women and sick children were reported to have lost their lives as a result of poor road access to nearby health facilities. Further findings also revealed that, the community’s only health facility has been taken over by bats and for this reason the health personnel attached to the facility have relocated to a primary school block of classrooms where they render skeleton services.

Kano Chronicle gathered that courtesy of the terrible condition of the road, many pregnant women gave birth on transit to health facilities because the available healthcare facility in the area operates during daytime only.

The said facility equally offer services to Dankunkuru,Malamawa, Lautai, Azore, Adaraye communities among many others and it is being maintained by the Dausara community for years through an effective Drug Revolving Fund (DRF) of about N190, 000 with only two health workers operating on shift basis.

Usman Ubale is a resident of the community and he told Kano Chronicle that last year he lost his wife as a result of child birth.

A father of two, Ubale said, “My wife started labour in the night and I did all my best to get a transport to take her to hospital but I could not get any. We had to wait till morning and got commercial tricycle that took her to the hospital but unfortunately she died on arrival even though the child survived.

“This is the life we live here. As Muslims we believe that whatever God destined to happen to his servant will surely happen; but my wife could probably be alive today had it been we have functional health facility and officials to attend to our sick ones in the night.

“But I watched my wife in pain throughout the night and she finally passed away and left behind a baby girl. Commercial vehicles eluded our community because of the nature of our road; our life style is like that of those who are condemned,” he said.

The Chairman, Dausara Development Association, Malam Muntari Lawan, said for about two years, bats had taken over the health facility and sent the health workers and patients out of the place.

He added that, the facility was established in 1977 and that ever since, no any major renovation was carried out to improve it not to talk of expanding it to carter for the increasing population of the community.

Lawan regretted that, the official residence of health officer built alongside the facility had collapsed and government could not fix it, lamenting that as result of that any health official posted to the area, had to reside outside the community.

“It is unfortunate that, over 10, 000 people have to live a life without a single functional health facility. Dausara community also lacks patent medicine store and should the makeshift health centre operating in the primary school close, we will be left with no option than to take our sick ones to Murtala Mohammed Specialist hospital, Sir Muhammadu Sanusi hospital or Bela hospital which are difficult to reach due to bad condition of our road.

“Our major problem at moment is access road leading to or out of the community. Our access road is in terrible state to the extent that commercial drivers have stopped coming to our area any more. Only tricycle riders are managing to take passengers to our community,” Lawan said.

The Chairman of the local committee that is manning the health facility, Malam Haruna Muhammed, said the facility was recording between 20 and 50 visitors at present as against 250 visitors in the past.

“We have reported the matter to the local government authority and a delegation was sent to assess the situation, but up to this moment, we have not heard from the local government. I am calling on authorities concern to, as a matter of urgency, look into our plight and come to our rescue,” he pleaded.