<p class="">Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN) has called on the Federal Ministry of Health to provide Anti-retroviral Drugs (ARVs) for the survival of those living with HIV.</p>
<h1>The National Coordinator of the Network, Mr Abdulkadir Ibrahim, made the call in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Abuja.</h1>
<p class="">Ibrahim who expressed concern over the shortage of drugs for the survival of those living with HIV, attributed it to negligence to procure the drugs by those in authorities.</p>
<p class="">“<em>Currently, we are having crises of shortage of second line drugs and stock out of third line drugs all over the country.</em></p>
<p class=""><em>“It is the responsibility of the Federal Ministry of Health to procure all ARVs but they have failed in that regards.</em></p>
<p class=""><em>“We want to know how the N400 million disbursed for drugs in the 2018 budget was managed</em>,” Ibrahim said.</p>
<p class="">He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to beam his search light on the Ministry of Health so as to ascertain how budgets being released for drugs were managed.</p>
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<p class="">Ibrahim said that the Network would not accept excuses again from the Federal Ministry of Health over the non-procurement of drugs because people’s lives were being endangered.</p>
<p class="">The coordinator, who condemned any form of corruption at the detriment of people living with HIV, said that lack of accountability of budgets for drugs was a recurring issue in 2018 and 2019.</p>
<p class="">He also raised alarm over the administration of expired third line ARVs to people living with HIV in Kano which he blamed on the failure of government to provide drugs.</p>
<p class="">Ibrahim, however, advocated direct involvement of NEPWHAN in matters of HIV/AIDS treatment interventions in the country to avert mismanagement and misappropriation. </p>