•Minister decries high death rate as Lagos supplies water to residents
•RDI says outbreak exposes poor water access, integrity
•Firm calls for precautionary measures, hygiene
Against the backdrop of cholera outbreak in Lagos and other states in the country, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has warned state governors against diversion of the N260 billion recently released for Primary Health Centres (PHCs) by President Bola Tinubu.
On his part, Minister of State for Environment, Iziaq Salako, expressed concern over the high incidence of fatalities in many communities, just as Lagos State Water Corporation (LWC) has supplied potable water to the affected areas of the state, especially Lagos Island.
Meanwhile, Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI) said the outbreak exposed the challenges that force Nigerians to patronise unwholesome sources of water delivery systems.
This was as pharmaceutical company, Vitabiotic, during a road walk in Lagos entitled: ‘Walk 4 Life’, called for the adoption of precautionary measures to tackle the spread.
Describing the release of the N260 billion for the revitalisation of PHCs as timely and laudable, Oyintiloye said the development would go a long way to checkmating the spread of cholera.
In a chat with journalists, yesterday, in Osogbo, Osun State, he lamented that many PHCs in the country lack the capacity to provide essential healthcare due to inadequate equipment, poor condition of service and infrastructure, lack of staffing and essential drugs, among other challenges.
While imploring the governors not to divert the money, the APC chief urged them to rather use it wisely to equip the PHCs in their states in the interest of the masses that would use the facilities.
The politician, who represented Obokun Constituency in the Osun State House of Assembly, recalled that the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Pate, had on May 24, 2024 said N260 billion had been earmarked for the revitalisation of PHCs across the country.
Oyintiloye further noted: “The disclosure by the minister at the briefing that plans were underway to expand the PHCs from 8,300 to 17,000 through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) and make them functional to deliver essential services was also commendable.”
IN a statement, yesterday, the minister noted that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported 1,159 suspected cases, 65 confirmed cases and 30 deaths across 30 states.
The states most affected include Bayelsa, Lagos, Zamfara, Abia, Bauchi, Cross River, Ebonyi, Delta, and Katsina.
Salako emphasised that in response to the outbreak, the Federal Ministry of Environment had been actively engaged through its Department of Pollution Control and Environmental Health and the Officers Registration Council of Nigeria.
THE areas LSWC supplied water included Oju Olokun community in Adeniji Adele, Lagos Island, as residents could be seen fetching clean water supplied by LSWC.
The immediate intervention by the corporation is to minimise further spread of the deadly disease in the area.
According to the Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, Lagos Island has the highest number of suspected cholera cases in the state.
World Health Organisation (WHO) says cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium, Vibrio cholerae.
LSWC reassured the residents that “public water is the safest” as it conforms to WHO’s standards.
The Managing Director, Mukhtar Tijani, through the Executive Director, Operations, Mrs Helen Taiwo, spoke at Baruwa Community Engagement Forum in the Palace of the Baale of Baruwa, Khalid Baruwa.
Baruwa appreciated Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and LSWC for providing water to the community and beyond, tasking the corporation on reasonable charges the people could pay.
RDI’s position is coming on the heels of the alert by NCDC that the country did not have enough vaccines to address the growing cases of cholera across the country.
The Project Officer, Ifeoluwa Adediran, said: “The periodic cholera outbreaks are alarming and reinforce our arguments that the abysmally low investment in the water sector at the state and federal levels are further complicated by poor maintenance of the facilities that house and freight water from the waterworks to the different localities they service. In some communities, the residents resort to unwholesome sources to get water. These are the issues that fuel the cholera outbreaks.
“In Lagos, where there have been more deaths, we are worried about the integrity of pipelines that convey water to localities. In many communities, the pipelines’ Right of Way (RoW) include gutters where breakages and other breaches usually occur and are not addressed for months and years in some cases.”
REPRESENTATIVE of the UK company, Damian Collins, said cholera could be eradicated through proper personal hygiene.
“From research conducted, it has been discovered that such an outbreak can be traced to poor hygiene practices.
So, personal hygiene is a startup to curb this outbreak. A healthy life starts with your nutrition. I encourage citizens to take their nutrition very seriously. Don’t eat junk food, simply because you just want to fill the stomach; take your nutrition very seriously,” he said.
A pharmacist, Okechukwu Okonkwo, urged citizens to always get clean at all times.
The outbreak, he said, is disturbing and a disease known for dirtiness because it finds its way to food and water.
National Marketing Manager, Vitabiotic, Paul Ngolube, said the outbreak was not a joke, advising citizens to maintain proper environmental and personal hygiene.
“When you come back home, make sure you wash your hands. When you buy anything to cook, fruits or vegetables, ensure you wash them properly, even with salt, before you take them,” he advised.
