Gunmen kill Female Medical Doctor in Rivers

A medical doctor, Dr. Florence Onua, has been shot dead by gunmen around Government Area in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State.



Onua, a consultant and family physician at the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital, BMSH, Port Harcourt, was reportedly shot while returning from work on Friday by gunmen suspected to be kidnappers. She later died, yesterday, at a medical centre where she was rushed to.
The Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Rivers State chapter has condemned the killing, describing it as regrettable.
The Public Relations Officer of NMA in the state, Dr. Justice Ohaka, who confirmed the incident to Vanguard, noted that the victim sustained several bullet wounds and later died at the emergency ward of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital.
Ohaka also expressed worries over the whereabouts of one Doctor Bob-Emmanuel Clark, who was kidnapped last month, and is still believed to be in the hands of his abductors.

The NMA spokesman called on the state government and security agencies to intervene to ensure the unconditional release of their colleague, Dr. Clark.
He said: “The incident is regrettable and condemnable. We lost a colleague even when one of our members, who was kidnapped last month, is nowhere to be found.
“The attacks directed at medical doctors are condemnable because we are innocent citizens, who are ensuring that we save lives. I wonder why the attacks.”

However, the Public Relations Officer of the Rivers State Police Command, DSP Nnamdi Omoni, said the police are aware of the shooting, but that he is not aware of the doctor’s death.
Omoni said the incident was reported to the Olu-Obasanjo Police Station and that before the police mobilised to the place, the gunmen had escaped.

By: Davies Iheamnachor Port Harcourt
Vanguard News