Health
Celebrate kidney donors, doctors, not victimise them — Surgeon
By Saheed Oyelakin
A Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Dr Torngee Malu, has called for kidney donors and doctors involved in transplant procedures to be celebrated rather than victimised.
Malu made the call on Tuesday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Morning Brief, while commenting on the arrest and parade of two doctors and other suspects by the Nigeria Police Force over an alleged organ-harvesting syndicate in Nasarawa State.
He said Nigeria’s inadequate blood donation system showed the need to encourage voluntary donations rather than stigmatise people who offer parts of their bodies for medical procedures.
“I think that these people should be celebrated and not victimised. Both the people who had the heart to donate a kidney and those who carried out the procedure—they should be celebrated.
“As far as I’m concerned, they are heroes because they have brought something that is new to Nigeria,” he said.
Malu said organ donation should be encouraged within a properly regulated system, rather than allowing social media allegations to determine public perception of medical procedures.
“Like the surgeon said, in this year alone, they’ve carried out six procedures and all of them are successful. I mean, as I said earlier, 50 people die from kidney disease every day in Nigeria.
“So we should be encouraging more people to go into these procedures under a coordinated system, rather than following social media sensations to victimise doctors. That’s what I think,” he said.
Speaking on the legal framework for organ donation, Malu said the law permits kidney donation under certain conditions.
“So, the law guiding kidney transplant, not just kidney transplant, but organ transplant, and by the way, blood is also considered as a body organ. Skin is considered as a body organ; it’s not just kidney. It’s just that the noise about kidney is so much. Even donation of key—of eggs for people, sperm donation is still covered by the law.
“It’s covered by the Nigerian Health Care Act of 2014, and what it stipulates is that the person who—can somebody can actually donate their kidneys,” he said.
He added that the procedure should involve adults, informed consent and a standard hospital.
“It also says that the procedure should be carried out only on adults, for people age 18 and above. And it said it should be carried out in a standard hospital, and then the people should get—give consent for the procedure to be carried out,” he said.
Applying this to the case under investigation, Malu said the individuals involved were adults and had consented to the procedures.
“Now, let’s bring it down to this index case. The people involved, are they under 18? No, they are above 18. They said it themselves. One of them is 23 years and above, so they are above 18, so they are not children. Two, did they give consent? They agreed that they actually gave consent.
“They actually signed consent, and from the interview I listened, the doctors said they actually swore an affidavit. They also said that they swore an affidavit. So, they went just beyond giving consent. They actually swore a court affidavit that they were aware of what was going on, and that they were donating voluntarily,” he said.
Malu also argued that the procedure was conducted in a standard hospital by qualified medical personnel.
“Now, fourthly, did they do this procedure in a standard hospital? Yes. It was carried out in a standard hospital by qualified medical doctors, surgeons, and a medical team,” he said.
He criticised what he described as “social media mob action” and called for proper investigation before medical practitioners were publicly accused.
“And so, the question I’m—I think that, I think we have followed too much social media mob action. We have not investigated the situation, because what came up first was a social media post by a social media activist about people’s kidneys being harvested, and the next thing we saw: police parading medical doctors who have been practicing medicine for over 20 years,” he said.
“I think that’s mob action, and I’m glad that Channels is giving me this opportunity to explain that the medical world is very different from what people actually see outside.”
The police had, on August 19, arrested four suspects during a sting operation at Auta Balifi in the Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.
Those paraded were Emmanuel Ode, 23; Dr Benjamin Oyime, 48, a nephrologist and consultant to Wellington Hospital, Life Camp, Abuja; Dr Daniel Otukpa, 53, also a nephrologist and Acting Director of Clinical Services at Wellington Hospital; and David Idoko, 25.
According to the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, Ode allegedly confessed to recruiting victims under false pretences.
The police alleged that one victim was lured to Wellington Hospital in April 2026, where his kidney was allegedly harvested after he was paid $1,250, while another victim allegedly underwent a similar procedure in 2022.
The police further alleged that the suspects and their accomplices targeted vulnerable young people and obtained consent for illegal organ harvesting by exploiting their financial difficulties.
The Force said investigations were ongoing to apprehend other suspects allegedly linked to the syndicate.
Copyright PUNCH
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.