Ministers, colleagues mourn late Igbobi Hospital MD
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Ishaq Salako and the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, colleagues, medical students, family, and well-wishers gathered on Tuesday to mourn the passing of the Medical Director of National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, Dr Mustapha Alimi.
Alimi, who assumed office eight years ago, died last Friday after a brief illness.
He was due to retire in July 2025.
Speaking at the Fidau prayer on the hospital’s premises, Salako said Alimi was patriotic to the country and committed to the profession.
The health minister said the country had lost an important personality in the field of medicine, stressing that Alimi’s contribution improved the health sector as envisioned by President Bola Tinubu.
He said, “When I visited here as Minister of State for Health, he was not physically on the ground, but I could see his footprints everywhere and I could see the development and the changes he brought to this hospital.
“In my interactions with him, I could also feel his sense of duty. I could feel his patriotism toward the country and his willingness to go the extra mile to ensure that things got done—to ensure that Nigeria’s health sector improved through this hospital and that Mr President’s agenda to reverse the trend of health tourism was achieved through this hospital.
“I think given what people have said today about him — from friends, childhood friends, those who grew up with him, his subordinates in the office, and the union leaders, the seniors in the profession — you can see that we have lost a very, very important personality in the profession and the country.”
Also speaking, Alausa said Alimi served the country, the people, and his religion with utmost dedication.
According to the minister, the significance of his service to humanity, his care for people, and his passion for improving the healthcare delivery system in the country were visible.
“He spent every single amount of money that he generated and every single budgetary allocation to the hospital judiciously. We got the maximum value for every naira spent.
“I was fortunate to work with him as the Chairman of the Hospital Management Board here. In the last seven years, there has been significant infrastructure improvement in this hospital, and it was based on his hard work, collaboration with his team, and his ability to work with his colleagues—the fellows, chief medical directors, and medical directors. His dedication to excellence was remarkable,” Alausa said.
The hospital’s Head of Clinical Services, Dr Olaide Lawal, described his deceased boss as “a surgeon par excellence who always dreamed of expanding the frontiers of orthopaedic practice in Nigeria.”
He noted that the late medical director was deeply committed to training younger residents, helping them become specialists, and ensuring they excelled in various aspects of orthopaedics.
“As the Medical Director, there were drastic changes from the time he assumed office to when he left.
“If you knew the National Orthopaedic Hospital before he assumed office, you would recognise the significant leap from what it used to be to what it is now.
“There have been major infrastructural upgrades and improvements,” Dr Lawal stated.
