Reps consider bill to bar public servants from private schools, hospitals

|By Adejumo Adekunle

A bill seeking to bar public and civil servants from patronising private schools and health facilities has scaled first reading at the House of Representatives.

The proposed legislation, titled A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Public and Civil Servants from Patronising Private Schools and Health Care Services and for Related Matters (HB 2487), was sponsored by Hon. Amobi Ogah, who represents Isuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency of Abia State.

If passed into law, the bill will compel political office holders, public servants, and their families to use only public hospitals and schools across the country.

Ogah said the proposed law aims to restore public trust in Nigeria’s deteriorating education and healthcare systems, which he believes suffer largely because public officials do not rely on them.

“This bill intends to avoid conflict of interest, maintain public trust and high uncompromised standards of public institutions,” he said while speaking on the House floor.

Describing the legislation as a “call to national rebirth,” Ogah called on Nigerians, civil society organisations, and the media to rally behind the initiative, noting that political elites must lead by example if reforms in the public sector are to succeed.

The lawmaker argued that when government officials are compelled to depend on public institutions, they will be more invested in improving them for the benefit of all citizens.

If the bill progresses through further readings and receives presidential assent, it could mark a historic shift in how public officials engage with services that affect everyday Nigerians.