The Nigerian Senate has called on the Federal Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), to ensure the procurement, quality assurance, proper storage, and nationwide availability of safe, effective, and affordable antivenoms in public and private hospitals across the country.
The call follows public outrage over the death of Abuja-based singer and former The Voice Nigeria contestant, Ifunanya Nwangene, popularly known as Nanyah, who died after suffering a snakebite and being unable to access antivenom treatment.
The Senate urged that priority attention be given to high-risk regions where snakebites are more common, stressing that antivenoms and other critical antidotes must be readily available as part of emergency healthcare preparedness.
Nwangene, 26, reportedly died after she was bitten by a cobra at her residence in Lugbe, Abuja. According to a detailed account shared by her close friend, Kingsley Nwangene, the singer was asleep when she felt a sharp pain and discovered a snake in her room.
In an Instagram post, Kingsley said he received a distress call from the singer around 8:30am on Sunday.
“She said, ‘Emy, don’t panic, but a snake has bitten me. I’m on my way to the hospital,’” he wrote.
He explained that Nwangene quickly arranged a commercial motorcycle ride and headed to Divine Health Hospital at the Trade Fair Mall in Lugbe. However, she was informed that the hospital had no antivenom.
“She then decided to go to another hospital that might have the antivenom,” Kingsley said, adding that he remained on the phone with her throughout the ordeal.
The singer later arrived at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi, at about 10am. According to her friend, staff at the emergency unit asked routine questions while her condition continued to worsen. She repeatedly asked whether antivenom was available.
“She told me they said they would give her a drip,” Kingsley said.
Doctors reportedly removed the tourniquet she had tied around her arm and advised her to remain calm.
“She told me, ‘Emy, they have removed the thing I used to tie my hand.’ I felt relieved because she was finally at the hospital. I believed the doctors knew better,” he added.
Despite these efforts, Nwangene later died from the effects of the venom.
Videos that surfaced online after her death showed a snake catcher handling a large snake allegedly found in her apartment.
Nwangene became widely known after appearing on The Voice Nigeria in 2021. Fondly called the “Soprano Queen,” she was celebrated for her powerful soprano voice and her ability to blend classical, jazz, R&B, soul and choral music. She was active in Abuja’s choral and creative music scene and was described by colleagues and fans as a “joy-giver” with an “angelic voice.”
Following her death, her body was exhumed and moved to Enugu State, according to a BBC report. The leader of the Abuja Metropolitan Music Society Choir, Sam Ezugwu, said the decision was taken by her father, who requested that her daughter’s body be transported to Enugu.
Nigeria records an estimated 20,000 snakebite cases annually, with about 2,000 deaths, according to a 2021 State Ministry of Health record.
