The Media Consultant to the Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN), Professor Patrick Sunday Dakum, Mr. Shabul Mazadu, has dismissed insinuations that the goodwill and humanitarian gestures of the health expert are driven by political ambition.

Speaking in Jos, Mazadu described such claims as “baseless, mischievous, and a deliberate attempt to smear the image of a man whose life has been a testimony of service above ambition.”

He explained that Dakum’s life of service predated politics, noting that as a youth he was already teaching Sunday school, guiding couples’ fellowship, and championing family life. “Children don’t vote. Dakum’s ministry in the church is discipleship, not politics,” he said.

Mazadu recalled Dakum’s years as Commissioner of Health in Plateau State, where he established General Hospitals in Tunkus, Angwari, and Dengi, acilities that remain functional and impactful. He also noted Dakum’s decision to step away from politics at the peak of Nigeria’s HIV/AIDS crisis to lead IHVN, growing it from three staff to over a thousand and touching millions of lives affected by HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria.

According to him, Dakum’s contributions extend beyond public office and the health sector. He has founded NGOs that provide boreholes, support vulnerable families, and mentor young people, while also lecturing abroad and still returning to Plateau State to guide children and literature clubs in church.

“This is not politics; this is service rooted in faith,” Mazadu stressed, adding that Dakum views politics as just one of many platforms for service.

He cautioned against attempts to politicize Dakum’s humanitarian work, declaring: “Professor Dakum’s life is proof that true service is not measured by political titles but by lives touched and communities rebuilt.”