The sleepy Umuchukwu community in Orumba South local government area of Anambra State will in a matter of time move from being an obscure community to
The sleepy Umuchukwu community in Orumba South local government area of Anambra State will in a matter of time move from being an obscure community to take its pride of place as a community for developmental researches with the recent commissioning of the Umuchukwu Medical Research Centre, the first of its kind in the country, by the governor of Anambra State, Willie Obiano.
The 16 storey high rise solely funded by Dr Godwin Maduka, the Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director of the Las Vegas Pain Institute and Medical Centre, the largest pain treatment centre in Nevada, USA, is set to become the hub of medical research in the country and on the African continent.
Equipped with state-of-the-art facilities in medical science, to assist students in clinical training, as well as provide quality resource materials for lecturers and researchers, the edifice would also serve as the temporary site for the College of Medicine, Anambra State University. A formal request has already been sent to that effect to the appropriate quarters. To ensure a delightful campus life for staff and students of the newly opened research centre, a four-storey building of 40 flats, has already been erected, in addition to a modern guest- house, furnished to taste, is also ready for use within the premises.
The legal adviser to Dr Maduka, Ray Onyegu, expressed optimism that Umuchukwu would soon become a university town. According to him, the Medical Research Centre would water the ground for a private university that would raise the bar in medical education and healthcare in the country. The Research Centre which is modeled after the Las Vegas Pain Institute and Medical Centre, Nevada, USA, is widely respected as the premier, one-stop destination for pain treatment and relief, where teams of experts in pain medicine, physical therapy, radiology, and wellness work together to decrease pain using the latest technologies and research.
A philanthropist, it is obvious that Dr Maduka is driven by the passion to transform the rural Umuchukwu community to a modern city with several laudable projects. In addition to the water treatment facility that will equally serve the community, Dr. Maduka is so security minded that he donated four two-storey buildings to serve as a police barrack, police patrol vehicles, a bungalow for officers’ mess and another one-storey building to serve as an operational base for the men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). There is also a modern structure duly completed for the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). This is also not forgetting a Magistrate Court, a High Court still in progress as well as a modern civic centre.
Prior to these massive projects, Maduka had built a boarding secondary school where students from Umuchukwu enjoy full scholarship from JS1 to SS3. It is believed that out of 100 graduates in the community, Maduka singlehandedly trains 90 per cent and helps some secure jobs. Therefore money is no longer a hindrance to anyone in the community who desires to be educated. This is besides youth empowerment projects through financial aids which he is heavily into. Just last year, Maduka fondly referred to as the Lion of Africa empowered 56 youths of the community with N56m to support their businesses.
“I pray to God to help me make Umuchukwu town more than what it is now. I commit most of what I do to God, asking him to take control. That is where my faith comes in. My dream is to see state, Federal or International presence here, after all Umuchukwu community right now, has everything an urban city has. I hope this happens within the next five years”, he says.
An adjunct clinical Professor of Anesthesiology, Pain Management and Surgery, Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Nevada, USA, Dr Maduka is a holder of three doctorate degrees from Havard University.
The Medical Research Centre
