National Health Regulatory Agency unconstitutional – GPA

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The Global Prolife Alliance (GPA) has faulted the planned establishment of the National Health Regulatory Agency, saying it “would be a fundamental departure from the constitutional provisions and established practices that have served Nigeria well over the years.” It added that “it is a major constitutional breach concerning the devolution of powers.”

In a petition to the National Assembly (NASS) signed by its chairman, Dr Philip Njemanze, the Global Prolife Alliance said:

“The Federal Government announced plans to establish a National Health Regulatory Agency to regulate healthcare facilities in Nigeria. We, the members of the Global Prolife Alliance (GPA), have made serious observations. Until now, state governments have regulated healthcare services in the states along with local governments in accordance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, Chapter II, Fundamental Objective and Directive Principles of State Policy: ‘(3) The state shall direct its policy towards ensuring that (d) there are adequate medical and health facilities for all persons.’

“Also, in the Fourth Schedule, Section 2(c): ‘The functions of the local government council shall include participation of such council in the Government of State as respects the following matters: (c) the provision and maintenance of health services.’ The planned establishment of the National Health Regulatory Agency would be a fundamental departure from the constitutional provisions and established practices that have served Nigeria well over the years. This is a major constitutional breach concerning the devolution of powers.”

The GPA further said: “This announcement was made by the Honourable Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Tunji Alausa, who stated that the establishment of this regulatory agency is a critical step in the government’s broader strategy to protect the health and well-being of all Nigerians. Dr. Alausa expressed grave concern over recent reports of illegal kidney harvesting operations in Abuja and other parts of the country.

“However, what has since become known is that the National Assembly (NASS) has legalized human organ harvesting in Nigeria by passing the National Health Act 2014. Specifically, the National Health Act 2014 created legal loopholes that could accommodate human organ trafficking in various sections of the NHAct 2014 (Sections 13, 20, 43, 45, 48, 51, 53, 58, and the definition of gametes). “Particularly, the NHAct 2014 (Sections 48 1(b), 51 1(b)) allows human organs and ovarian eggs to be taken without consent. These loopholes are obvious to anyone applying common sense.”

The GPA disclosed that the NHAct 2014, in Section 51, states: “(1) A person shall not remove tissue from a living person for transplantation in another living person or carry out the transplantation of such tissue except: (a) in a hospital authorized for that purpose; and (b) on the written authority of:

(i) the medical practitioner in charge of clinical services in that hospital or any other medical practitioner authorized by him or her; or

(ii) in the case where there is no medical practitioner in charge of the clinical services at that hospital, a medical practitioner authorized thereto by the person in charge of the hospital.

“(2) The medical practitioner stated in subsection (1)(b) shall not be the lead participant in a transplant for which he has granted authorization under that subsection. (3) For the purpose of transplantation, there shall be an independent tissue transplantation Committee within any health establishment that engages in the act and practice of transplantation as prescribed.”

The GPA rebutted Section 51, saying: “Section 51 of the National Health Act 2014 focuses on transplantation, which is not relevant to health system regulation. Transplantation laws are typically addressed separately from health framework laws. The inclusion of these provisions in the NHAct 2014 was driven by the interests of foreign sponsors involved in human organ and ovarian egg trafficking.

“However, it is important to note that the main subjects of any transplantation surgery are the Donor (who provides the organ) and the Recipient (who receives the organ).

“In Section 51, there should have been recognition of the rights and obligations of both the donor and the recipient. However, the drafters of the NHAct 2014 chose to prioritize the rights of the health administrator, who has no personal stake in the matter. This goes against the fundamental legal principle of ‘nemo dat quod non habet’ – meaning ‘you cannot give what you do not have.’

“In other words, a doctor cannot authorize the transplantation of another person’s organ. Unfortunately, the NHAct 2014 overturned this universally recognized legal principle, granting doctors/administrators power over the right to life of another person, the ‘donor.’ This constitutes a major violation of the donor’s fundamental right to life and breaches the fundamental rights section of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Section 51 is null and void and has no effect. It was intentionally worded to benefit the organ trafficking cartel, who own the hospitals licensed for transplantation, including 260 foreign-owned hospitals sponsored by the billionaire foundation to be built across Nigeria.

“The NHAct 2014 allows their foreign doctors to collect organs without the owner’s consent. During the National Health Bill (NHBill) public hearings, all stakeholders demanded that Section 51(b) clearly state ‘on the written informed consent of the patient (donor).’ Administrative instructions by the hospital management regarding transplantation should only be applicable with the patient’s informed written consent.

“The GPA and the Association of Catholic Medical Practitioners of Nigeria (ACMPN) presented memos during the public hearing, arguing against these contentious provisions of the NHAct 2014. All speakers rejected the argument made by the Senate Committee on Health that Section 48 provided for ‘informed consent.’ To record the opposition, the Senate Committee Chairman on Health called for a voice vote, and the amendment was overwhelmingly accepted to be inserted in Section 51.

“The current wording of Section 51 represents a significant violation of the Helsinki Declaration on human subject written informed consent for medical procedures and research.

It also violates Article 3 of the UN Universal Declaration on Human Rights and Article 33 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which protects the Fundamental Right to Life. “These violations of the Helsinki Declaration and UN Universal Declaration on Human Rights are grave and could result in sanctions against Nigeria, including the suspension of its privileges as a UN member state. Nigeria’s human rights record could be downgraded as a result.”

The GPA further said that the NHAct 2014 promotes human organ poaching in Section 48. The group said: “The proponents of the law say that in Section 48, there is a provision for donor consent. Let us examine Section 48:

“(1) Subject to the provision of Section 53, a person shall not remove tissue, blood, or blood products from the body of another living person for any purpose except:

(a) with the informed consent of the person from whom the tissue, blood, or blood product is removed, granted in the prescribed manner;

(b) that the consent clause may be waived for medical investigations and treatment in emergency cases; and

(c) in accordance with prescribed protocols by the appropriate authority.

(2) A person shall not remove tissue which is not replaceable by natural processes from a person younger than eighteen years.

(b) Tissue, blood, or blood products shall not be removed from the body of another living person for the purpose of merchandise, sale, or commercial purposes.

(3) A person who contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction in the case of –

(a) in the case of tissue, a fine of N1,000,000 or imprisonment of not less than two years or both; and

(b) in the case of blood or blood products, a fine of N100,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or both.”

The GPA also rebutted Section 48, saying: “Section 48(b) waives the right to consent in emergencies. What is an emergency? According to the Oxford Dictionary, it is a serious, unexpected, and often dangerous situation requiring immediate action. Wikipedia defines an emergency as a situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property, or the environment. In medicine, most health conditions can qualify as emergencies at some point in their development, including severe headaches.

“The NHAct 2014 states that in these emergency situations, the informed consent of the patient and donor may be waived for investigations and treatment.

“It is important to note that the donor is a ‘healthy person’, and their condition cannot be associated with an emergency. It is not justifiable to operate on a healthy donor without their consent for any reason to harvest an organ because of an emergency in a Recipient. However, the NHAct 2014 allows for the declaration of an ’emergency’ with regard to the recipient (patient) as an excuse to operate and harvest an organ from a healthy Nigerian donor without consent.

“It is crucial to understand that the two major functions of a hospital are investigations and treatment, including surgery, particularly transplantation. However, there is no legal requirement for the Nigerian patient/donor to be consulted regarding these procedures. Does ’emergency’ imply that the patient is mentally incompetent to give consent for a serious medical procedure like transplantation? Of course not! This is the work of the international human organ trafficking cartel in partnership with their Nigerian organ traffickers who were involved in the government from the time of inception in 2014 to date.

“Such actions should never be acceptable in the history of humanity. The Nuremberg trials were instituted against German Nazi doctors who experimented on Jews without their written informed consent. Now, in Nigeria, we have the NHAct 2014, which mandates an even more barbaric act against Nigerians.

“It is not surprising that some professional leaders would support the NHAct 2014. They do so because they have been bribed, betraying their motherland in an act of treasonable betrayal. The EFCC and ICPC should investigate all those involved in the government and NASS in relation to facilitating the NHAct 2014.

“They pushed the Nigerian Government to offer its entire population to be slaughtered for their organs, led by a billionaire foundation. This is a source of national humiliation and has caused the government to lose its legitimacy as a protector of the people before God and the people.

“The arguments made by proponents that the consent clause was waived due to a ‘lack of education’ are complete nonsense. Even an uneducated person (probably someone who cannot speak English) can understand and reply in their language. In medical practice, it is forbidden to waive the right to consent under any circumstances for living or even deceased individuals, where consent is transferred to the next of kin, as stated in the Geneva Declaration.

“Even when a living patient is unconscious or unable to make decisions, the right of consent is temporarily transferred to their next of kin, guardian, or parents in the case of a child, but it is never waived. The Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has reaffirmed this important principle in landmark decisions on medical malpractice, even when the patient’s life is at stake.

“Note that Section 53 forbids the selling and buying of human organs. However, this provision is deceptive, as paying money to the person whose organ was collected is illegal, except for so-called ‘reasonable costs.’ The sale of organs by the hospital to another person may not fall within the scope of this law in Nigeria, as the commercial transaction could take place on the Internet, hence not under any territorial jurisdiction.

“Section 48 makes reference to Section 53: It is an Offence for a person: ‘1(a) who has donated tissue, blood, or a blood product to receive any form of financial or other reward for such donation, except for the reimbursement of reasonable costs incurred by him or her to provide such donation;

(b) to sell or trade in tissue, blood, blood products except for reasonable payments made in appropriate health establishments for the procurement of tissues, blood, or blood products;

(2) Any person found guilty of an offence under subsection (1) is liable on conviction to a fine of N100,000 (one hundred thousand naira) or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or to both fine and imprisonment.”

GPA further rebuttal Section 53, saying: “Section 53(b) states that it is legal to request ‘reasonable payments.’ Therefore, the reader should consider what constitutes a ‘reasonable payment’ for donating one of their kidneys. Could this cost be N10,000 or N10,000,000? The answer to this question reveals that the preferred option, which many people would consider reasonable for risking their life to donate a kidney, would be N10 million rather than N10,000. This clearly highlights the deceptive language used in the NHAct 2014 to legalize the trafficking of human organs for monetary gain.

“The GPA and other stakeholders raised this point in memos and presentations during the public hearing on the NHBill 2014. It was well appreciated by the Nigerians present, and the legislators promised to amend this section but failed to do so.

“Secondly, while it may appear that selling organs is illegal under Section 53(a), it is explicitly legal for healthcare establishments to purchase organs under Section 53(b). This provision was included to absolve the hospitals associated with the cartel from any legal liabilities in Nigeria.

“In the NHAct 2014, millions of Nigerians have their organs taken through deceptive means in exchange for purported free emergency treatment outlined in Section 20. ‘Section 20 (1) A health care provider, health worker, or health establishment shall not refuse a person emergency medical treatment for any reason.’

“However, since the law does not provide a clear definition of what constitutes an ’emergency,’ all medical conditions can be deemed emergencies under this legislation. Consequently, hospitals may admit numerous individuals under the guise of an ’emergency’ for free treatment, while these individuals may unknowingly pay with their organs. Under Sections 48 and 51, the CONSENT CLAUSE IS WAIVED IN EMERGENCY, and the medical director has the authority to decide that a patient’s organ be taken for transplantation to another living person, referred to as an ‘organ transplantation tourist.’ These tourists have paid substantial sums of money, often hundreds of thousands of US dollars, to receive organs such as a young Nigerian’s heart through online transactions. Astonishingly, all of these transactions are perfectly legal according to the NHAct 2014.

“The NHAct 2014 grants authorization for organ poaching, which includes the procurement of tissue-matched organs from individuals, regardless of their social or economic status, whether they are Nigerian citizens, tourists, or foreigners. In Nigeria, no one is exempt from the threat of organ poaching. Any person whose organ matches the requirements of the international organ trafficking cartel could be targeted for their organs under the guise of legality. This situation represents a flagrant violation of the International Human Rights Convention by the Nigerian government, as it endangers the lives and rights of its citizens as well as individuals passing through the country. “Regardless of the reason for admission, be it medical or otherwise, the NHAct 2014 empowers the medical director to authorize surgical procedures for organ transplantation from the healthy donor to another individual solely based on tissue compatibility. It is highly likely that neighbouring states to Nigeria and other countries whose citizens have had their organs poached in Nigeria will drag the country to the International Court of Justice for gross human rights violations.

“Under Section 51 of the NHAct 2014, the decision to poach organs from Nigerians and foreigners within Nigeria would technically be considered legal. In the event that a patient dies and their organs are harvested, the same medical director empowered by the NHAct 2014 is given the authority to determine whether or not an autopsy should be conducted to investigate any potential crimes committed at their hospital. This provision, outlined in Section 58, was strategically included by the International Organ Traffickers to shield themselves from prosecution:

“Section 58: (1) Subject to subsection (2), a post-mortem examination of the deceased person may be conducted if –

(a) the person, while alive, gave consent thereto; (b) the spouse, child, parent, guardian, brother, or sister of the deceased not below the age of eighteen (18) years in the specific order mentioned, gave consent thereto; or (c) such an examination is necessary for determining the cause of death.

(2) A post-mortem examination may not take place unless – (a) the medical practitioner in charge of clinical services in the hospital or authorized institution or of the mortuary in question, or any other medical practitioner authorized by such practitioner, has authorized the post-mortem examination in writing and in the prescribed manner; or

(b) In the case where there is no medical practitioner in charge of clinical services, a medical practitioner authorized by the person in charge of such hospital or authorized institution has authorized the post-mortem examination in writing and in the prescribed manner.”

The GPA also rebutted Section 58, saying: “The NHAct 2014 excludes the Nigerian Police from investigating medical malpractice and criminal activities, particularly the involvement of hospitals and the organ poaching cartel. Section 58 provides that the decision to authorize an autopsy is solely in the hands of the medical director, who may, in fact, have ordered the criminal organ harvesting. Therefore, there is a high likelihood that the medical director may deny consent for an autopsy to be conducted when it is most needed, creating a cover-up for the crime.

“This is the most terrifying part of the law because, once the organ of the patient has been poached, the medical director will likely certify that the patient died due to natural causes without a post-mortem investigation, and the body will be disposed of in a mass grave. The question remains: How will the international community react to this legislation when they discover that their citizens have been ‘poached for their organs’ during their visit to Nigeria, a country that claims to be democratic? This is one of the greatest betrayals of trust by the Nigerian government against the international community and entire humanity typical of a ‘failed state’.

“The NHAct 2014 permits the poaching of human ovarian eggs. This was deceptively and deliberately crafted by the Cartel. For this purpose, NHA 2014 excluded gametes (ovarian eggs and sperm) in the definition of “tissue”:

See Interpretation: “‘tissue’ means human tissue, and includes flesh, bone, a gland, an organ, skin, bone marrow, or body fluid, but excludes blood or a gamete.”

“To collect the ovarian eggs which is a gamete by the In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) procedure, a woman receives a series of hormonal injections to stimulate the ovaries. Once stimulated, the ovaries could go into overdrive or hyperstimulation, causing complications called Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (kidney failure, liver failure, cancers, infertility, etc.). Illegally, Nigerian IVF clinics are already the largest exporter of human ovarian eggs in the world according to European Union report! These Nigerians are killed in Western laboratories for embryonic stem cell research. More Nigerians die in the human embryo trafficking slave trade than all those who died during the slave trade and wars. The Western biotechnology laboratories need one hundred million ovarian eggs to perfect the technology of human organ cloning called Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT).

“It is estimated that when fully implemented the NHAct 2014 facilitation of Ovarian Egg poaching would cause the death of over ten million Nigerian women with a few decades. The NHAct 2014 has legitimized this evil practice. Nigerians must wake up and be informed of the dangers of what a few unpatriotic criminal elements among us, in liaison with foreign powers, have done to kill innocent Nigerians.

“The NHAct 2014 is a danger to our national security. The state governments must refrain from domestication of the NHAct 2014. It is not surprising that in Abuja FCT where the NHAct 2014 became law on passage by NASS with no need for domestication, human organ poaching has been frequently observed. We call on all Nigerians to rise and demand the NHAct 2014 be repealed in defense of our Motherland.

“In conclusion, NHAct 2014 does not address these issues, as it was drafted to justify criminal activities and pave the way for the legalization of the international business of organ trafficking. What needs to be done by the National Assembly is to repeal the NHAct 2014 and expunge sections on organ harvesting. The future of the government as a legitimate entity lies in the will of the people who are governed by it. To maintain its legitimacy, the Nigerian government must urgently amend the NHAct 2014, which has been used as a cover for the illegal practice of organ trafficking in the country.

“Furthermore, there should be an independent investigative body outside of the medical profession that is solely dedicated to monitoring and preventing organ trafficking activities within the country. Such an independent body will ensure that justice is served for victims of organ trafficking and hold those responsible accountable for their actions.”

Copies of the petition were sent to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima, Senator Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate NASS and Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, among others.