COVID-19: The Equaliser -By Sesugh Akume

In 1989, as prime minister of Malaysia, Mahathir Mohamad, had a heart attack. His doctors advised him to seek medical attention in the US, but declined, it had to be in treated Malaysia, whatever it took, he said. As a doctor himself, he knew the risk involved, more so that heart bypasses were a relatively new procedure at the time. He knew there was no way the doctors would allow their PM to die in their hands in Malaysia, and so would do their level best. There is nothing they didn’t do, and he survived it. But guess what? The healthcare system in Malaysia never recovered from that. This (among other things he did) was so appreciated that decades later after this incidence, after he had left office, things got bad in the country, they didn’t mind bringing this gentleman in his 90s back to be PM again.

The other interesting thing is, in 2006 he had another heart attack when he was no longer the PM, in fact 2 within 3 weeks and needed to go for a quadruple bypass. Guess where he had it? Imagine that Malaysia hadn’t the capacity and facilities for this procedure in their own country, what would’ve been his fate now as a private citizen?

The symbolism of a head of state or government, for instance, attending a government (or military) hospital cannot be fully quantified. The proof of pudding is in the eating. If your government is functional, then you would prove it by using its facilities, as what is good for the goose is sauce for the gander. Doing otherwise demonstrates that your government is dysfunctional. This is the standard, global practice. You would hardly ever hear that a US president went on holiday to England. Or a German president went for medical treatment in France. It’s also a matter of national pride. 

Second, the general idea is to create a society of equality. Just like you the president, lawmaker or any high-office holder wouldn’t want to go to a dirty, dingy, smelly, disorganised, understaffed, ill-equipped, hospital with untrained, unskilled, rude and unprofessional staff so should no one in your country face that. By going to government hospitals, you affirm this. Even if they aren’t functioning well, because you seek medical attention there, they will be forced to upgrade and standardise. You too will be forced to make it happen. We are to work towards as society that affords equal opportunity for the least and weakest person. That is their benefit for belonging to the society.

A time comes when money fails. The standard time for getting a patient to undergo heart procedures in event of a failure, for instance, is 90 minutes. I’m sorry, with all his billions of naira, if it happens to Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest man and he’s in Nigeria his home country, it may not end in good news, because we lack the capacity and facilities. His billions of dollars and supersonic private jets can’t take him to Europe or North America in 90 minutes.

Likewise, the president of Nigeria. His 10 or so presidential jets plus the new one just acquired this year, and all the billions of petrodollars he freely has access to won’t save him in that day. But further imagine that like Mahathir, if it happens when he is no longer president, what would be his fate? Then he wouldn’t have this level of privilege. It means it will be worse.

This is another reason we must always work towards having a system the works for all. And not rely on money, access, and privilege today, for no one knows tomorrow. This is enlightened self-interest.

These are lessons for us all. Our healthcare system has been a mess because those who should fix it, and those who should ensure that they are fixed didn’t mind. COVID-19 has, however, made us all vulnerable and exposed, whoever we are. It should be a lesson when this pandemic is over, hoping that the point has been gotten this time.