Cholera Outbreak : About 300 Hospitalised in Bauchi
- ActionAid urges state govt, NCDC to declare state of emergency
By Segun Awofadeji
No fewer than 300 persons have been hospitalised following an outbreak of Cholera in Dass Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The ActionAid Nigeria has enjoined the Bauchi state government and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to declare a state of emergency over the outbreak in the state to save the residents from the disease.
On June 17, the State Primary Health Care Development Agency had said that over 2,800 persons were hospitalized in the state while 42 deaths were recorded.
The Director of Programmes, Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (BASPHCDA) Hajiya Suwaiba Yakubu Jibrin was in Dass Local Government Area of the state where she assessed the situation of the outbreak in the area.
According to her, “There is an urgent need for the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to come to the aid of the people of Bauchi State to stem the spread of the disease to other communities. It is even surprising that the NCDC is yet to wade in despite a report of 591 confirmed cases between 29th May to July 16th 2021”.
She implored households to observe critical hygiene rules by ensuring that food was always prepared under hygienic conditions, saying that the disease can be contracted through contaminated food and water.
Meanwhile, the ActionAid Nigeria has enjoined the Bauchi state government and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to declare a state of emergency over the outbreak in the state to save residents from the disease.
The Resident Programme Coordinator of ActionAid, Mr Anicetus Atakpu said that ActionAid donated 1,500 kits to Cholera Treatment Centres (CTC) in Bauchi, Ningi, Dass and Toro.
According to him, “Our visit to cholera hotspot in Bauchi state has convinced us to believe that what we have donated was just a drop in the ocean and we feel more international agencies should also render help to the state in order to halt the spread of cholera”.
While commending Bauchi state government for its effort so far, he however noted that there was a disconnect between agencies of government, stressing that if there is better synergy, record of infected persons and fatality will not be high.
