Posted on: Sat 24-06-2017

The Ag. Registrar /CEO MLSCN, Mr Tosan Erhabor took over the reigns of leadership of the council as a child of necessity. The gruesome murder of the then Ag. Registrar of the Council, Mrs Olufunke Omotuyi, by yet to be identified assailants created a vacuum and destiny mandated Mr Erhaboh to fill even while he was still in tears. Staff morale was low and apprehension was fever-peak as to what would befall the successor of the murdered Ag. Registrar especially since the killers of the former remained in the dark. Mr Erhaboh had to man up to face the task in amidst apprehension.

The major issue he was up and against was the suspension of the right to inspect and accredit medical laboratories in Nigeria which the FMoH had slapped on the MLSCN.

Medical Laboratory Regulation through inspection and accreditation is a cardinal mandate of the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria as captured in the MLSCN Act 11(2003).

The MLSCN has performed this duty admirably for as long as the law had existed until years back when by inference or by interference, the FMoH through the Minister of Health suspended MLSCN from carrying out the sacred responsibility.

While the MLSCN stood suspended on these duties, she was not better than a toothless bull dog that could bark without any capacity to bite. Many asked rhetorically that of what essence was a regulatory body without regulatory powers? While the suspension stood, our territory of practice was compromised, plundered and abused by innate opportunists. They desecrated the sanctity of our professional sanctuary and deflowered our professional hymen with unthinkable recklessness. Our young graduates lost out on positions and placements to quacks while strangers became 'proud' owners of medical laboratories churning out wild and weird laboratory results, sending innocent Nigerians into early graves to the consternation of many a Medical Laboratory Scientists.

While the suspension lasted, our professional cyber spaces became a behest and a beehive of innuendoes, conflagrations and toxic discharges as young and old vented their red bile on the leaderships of AMLSN and MLSCN in a desperate search for solution.

While the suspension lasted and the cyber pandemonium heightened with high octave argy-bargy, the Ag. Registrar of the Council, Mr Tosan Erhaboh along with team went to work. They traversed orthodox and unorthodox terrains, dared the Lions and the Bears and insisted on taking back the birthright of the profession.

The sleepless nights of lobbying, strategy rejigging and resolute stance eventually paid off when the firepower of the Edo born MLSCN helmsman subdued every other attribution by the FMoH as they had to return to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.

Today, the right to inspect and accredit ALL medical laboratories has been returned to the rightful owner, the MLSCN. Consequently, Mr Tosan Erhaboh deserves commendation for his doggedness and resilience. It calls for celebration. If it took us days to lament on social media on the loss of this right, then it should take us more days to celebrate this milestone.

We must break the news with national razzmatazz, media fireworks and joyful street pandemonium. Mr Tosan refused to take a 'NO' for an answer and today he has conquered what should have conquered us and dented his administration. With this landmark achievement and others too numerous to mention, the Ag. Registrar deserves a permanent appointment as Registrar/CEO of Council.

Solomon Chollom
Public Affairs Commentator

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