Senator Sunday Marshall Katung, representing Kaduna South Senatorial District, has explained that his long-standing personal encounters with families affected by sickle cell disorder motivated his sponsorship of the Sickle Cell Prevention, Control and Management Bill, currently before the National Assembly.
In an interview, Katung recalled a painful memory from 1991, when a young relative living with sickle cell disease, overwhelmed by constant crises, begged his parents to “allow me to die so that you can rest.” “That statement broke me,” he said. “It has stayed with me ever since.”
The senator noted that he first attempted to sponsor a similar bill in 2016 while in the House of Representatives, but it did not pass. “Now that I’m back in the National Assembly, I felt strongly that this bill must be revisited and done properly. Too many people have died because of this disorder,” he said, also citing the late Military Administrator of Kaduna State, General Mukhtar, whose children repeatedly suffered crises and passed away.
Katung said the bill is now set for public hearing on Monday, after which it will return to the House for final consideration before being forwarded for presidential assent. He called on the media and stakeholders to support the process, stressing that the legislation “will truly change lives.”
He commended religious institutions that now insist on genotype screening before marriage, noting that the practice helps prevent avoidable suffering. “If you have ever seen someone in sickle cell crisis, you will understand. Love alone cannot sustain a marriage in the face of such pain,” he said.
The senator highlighted Nigeria’s disproportionate burden of the disease, with 150,000 of the 350,000 babies born globally with sickle cell disorder each year. He lamented the cost of imported medications, often ordered months in advance from London, and explained that the proposed legislation encourages local drug production, establishes treatment centres in every local government, and creates centres of excellence across the six geopolitical zones.
Regarding pre-marriage genotype testing, Katung said many experts recommend it, but it should be introduced carefully through stakeholder consultations due to Nigeria’s “very sensitive” context.
Katung also spoke on his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), attributing it to gratitude toward President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. “No President—living or dead—has done for my people what he has done,” he said, citing the establishment of a Federal University, its College of Medicine, and a Federal Medical Centre in his district within 18 months. He added that even if he had remained in the PDP, he would have supported the President “100%,” noting that staying in the opposition while working for Tinubu “would have amounted to anti-party.”
The senator expressed concern over infrastructural neglect in Kauru and Sanga LGAs, describing them as among the most abandoned communities in Nigeria. He recounted instances where students drowned crossing a river due to the absence of a bridge. “A 15-minute journey can take three to four hours. Some villages have never been visited by government officials because of the terrain,” he said, emphasizing that roads, electrification, and healthcare facilities are his key priorities.
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Katung warned that lack of engagement fuels insecurity and youth restiveness. “When youths are idle, they fall into drugs, crime, or political thuggery,” he said.
While declining to disclose full details, Katung confirmed that his NGO supports about 55 sickle cell patients under the care of a public-health physician. He described this as a personal sacrifice rather than a publicity effort.
He also reaffirmed his strong advocacy for women, widows, and orphans, crediting his mother for shaping his outlook on women’s empowerment. “Women are not weak vessels. Many of the most industrious Nigerians are women. Even the biggest banks are headed by women,” he said, adding that women are given priority in all his constituency projects.