Mental health: Obasa supports collective responsibility, collaboration with legislators

Given the sadness and prevalence of mental health problems throughout the country, the speaker of the Lagos State Assembly House, RT. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, supported the intersectoral collaboration with the assembly and collective responsibility by agencies, individuals and institutions.

Speaking in his capacity as president to the seventh public lesson of the Board of Fellows, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), held on Tuesday 2 July 2025, at the Hotel Festival, Amuwo -odin, Lagos, Obasa described the theme, mental health: a crucial basic human right for staff, community and socio-economic development, as promptly at a global level.

He said: “We live in times when the mental health of individuals is becoming more and more a question of public concern because on a global level there is a growing incidence of mental health disorders and, unfortunately, Nigeria is not exempt”.

Lagos speaker has calculated that mental health is crucial for personal development and the community because, “it is the foundation on which growth and personal results are built. To thrive our nation, we need citizens who are mentally healthy and can contribute significantly to national development.

“The socio -economic development is intertwined with mental health. A nation with a great burden of mental health disorders will undoubtedly suffer a decline in productivity, a decrease in the quality of life and a tension to health resources.”

On the contrary, he said that a community with a high prevalence of mental health disorders is not only destabilized, but has no progress. Therefore, he continued: “It is important that we assume collective responsibility to ensure that our communities are mentally healthy. As a nation, we must pay close attention to mental health and integrate it into our public health policies”.

Obasa recalled that the issue of mental health is very dear to him, which encouraged the issuance of the law on the mental health service of the 2018 Lagos state during his first term as a speaker. The law provides for the protection and care of people with mental health conditions and substances abuse, underlines the rights of patients, including the right to treatment close to their home and the same rights as natural persons. It also focuses on the integration of mental health services in primary health care, on the supply of complete coverage and on the promotion of intersectoral collaboration.

However, Obasa observed that professional bodies such as PSN do not collaborate enough with legislators to guide change. “We must support policies that promote assistance for mental health, combat stigma and support initiatives to improve mental well -being. Together, we can guarantee that mental health is recognized as a fundamental human right essential for personal, community and socio -economic development,” he concluded.

Brig. General Buba Marwa (Rtd.), President/CEO of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and special guest of honor, has connected the increase in mental health problems to false drugs and substances abuse. He described mental health as a neglected aspect of public health and has asked for greater awareness and awareness programs by PSN.

In his address, Pharm. UCC Akpakama, President, Board of Fellow, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, said: “It is documented that more than a quarter of the Nigerian population has mental health problems, exacerbated by current socio -economic situations, including extreme poverty, internal displacement, insecurity and unemployment.” Akpakama said she hoped that the public lesson would face the current state of mental health in Nigeria, the role of pharmacists, other health professionals and offer strategies for the promotion of awareness of mental health.

The main speaker, Dr. Gonjubola Abiri, psychiatrist consultant and CEO of Redi-Med Consulting, a medical consultancy firm, said that having established the gloomy of the situation, “the push now is to guarantee the promotion of mental health and the prevention of mental health disorders in life.

Pharm. Gbenga Falabi, president of the planning committee, said that the annual lesson acts as a platform for the sharing of knowledge and the development of strategies to promote awareness of mental health. “Today’s intuitions will improve our understanding of the critical role of mental health in personal, community and socio -economic development,” he said.