In response to mounting concerns, the Cross River State Taskforce on Health Quality and Anti-Quackery has shut down Ben Damare Clinic and Maternity located in the Ekori community of Yakurr LGA. Dr. Dan Abubakar, the coordinator of the taskforce, announced the closure after confirming with the State Ministry of Health that the facility was not registered.
Dr. Abubakar stated that the clinic was deemed unfit to provide medical services. The clinic owner and manager have been apprehended and are currently in police custody in Ekori, pending further investigation and possible court proceedings.
The operation was carried out in collaboration with local police following community reports of increased maternal and infant mortality at the clinic. Dr. Abubakar highlighted several deficiencies discovered during the inspection. He reaffirmed the taskforce’s dedication to eliminating quackery in the state’s healthcare system and ensuring adherence to established medical standards.
Recent incidents at the clinic included the deaths of a mother and her twin babies, and another mother and child, all following cesarean sections.
Dr. Olisa Obi, the clinic’s proprietor, defended his credentials, claiming he graduated from the University of Port Harcourt and had experience with an NGO in Ebonyi State. He pledged to provide documentation proving the clinic’s registration. Dr. Obi attributed the fatalities to complications that, while unfortunate, can occur in medical settings.
This development comes after a recent taskforce crackdown on a fraudulent trado-medical fair in Ogoja. Additionally, the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Henry Egbe Ayuk, recently disputed claims by Arthur Jarvis University that it had established the state’s first trado-medical research center, instructing the university to halt further activities.
