Former Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, has pledged to pay for the surgery of a baby born without an anus, with the procedure estimated to cost between ₦3 million and ₦5 million.
She made the commitment during a week-long free medical outreach across the Isuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency in Abia State, saying no child should die because their family cannot afford medical treatment.
According to Onyejeocha, the infant’s condition was one of several critical cases identified during the outreach. She said the baby’s mother had been informed that corrective surgery would cost millions of naira—an amount far beyond her means.
Speaking with journalists after inspecting the exercise, Onyejeocha said she had instructed the volunteer medical team to refer patients with conditions beyond the scope of the outreach to hospitals, with all treatment costs billed directly to her.
She explained that the baby currently passes waste through an opening in the abdomen and urgently requires specialized surgery to survive.
The former minister described the case as a reflection of the healthcare challenges faced by many low-income families, stressing that financial hardship should never determine who receives life-saving treatment.
Onyejeocha noted that her medical outreach programme has been running continuously for 19 years, long before she ventured into politics, adding that the initiative was inspired by her family’s tradition of caring for the less privileged.
She said this year’s outreach is expected to provide medical care for about 1,000 people, while patients requiring advanced treatment would receive further medical support at her expense.
The outreach was also extended to the nomadic school at the Lokpanta Regional Cattle Market, where pupils, women, and members of the Northern community received free medical attention.
Community leaders, including former market chairman Alhaji Ali Umar, Secretary Ali Ibrahim Kanima, and Chief Imam Mohammed Tukur Usman, commended Onyejeocha for including the market community in the programme. They also praised the Abia State Government for improving security in the area, while appealing for a lasting solution to the community’s water shortage.
Parents whose children benefited from free hernia surgeries during the outreach also expressed gratitude, describing the intervention as life-changing.
Onyejeocha said she would continue supporting vulnerable Nigerians through humanitarian programmes and, if elected back to the National Assembly, would work to strengthen healthcare policies based on her years of grassroots medical experience.
Medical officials overseeing the outreach said several successful surgeries had already been carried out, with healthcare professionals working to reach as many beneficiaries as possible.
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