Checkmate spread of cholera, Reps task FG

The House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to quickly put in place measures to check the spread of cholera across the country.

Tuesday’s resolution of the House followed the adoption of a motion of public urgent importance moved by the House Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, titled “Urgent need to check the outbreak of cholera in Lagos and other parts of the country.”

Following the adoption of the motion during a plenary presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, the legislative chamber urged the Federal and respective state governments “To urgently put in place measures to effectively check the outbreak of cholera in the country.”

It also mandated its Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values to “Undertake rigorous public orientation, enlightenment and education of the citizenry on the need to maintain personal hygiene at all times by relevant government agencies.”

It further mandated the Committee on Healthcare Services to urgently liaise with relevant stakeholders in the health sector “To investigate the root cause of the outbreak and report back to the House within two weeks for further legislative action/intervention.”

In his argument, Chinda noted that the House was concerned about the public and personal health of teeming Nigerians largely due to a lack of access to clean water, poor sanitation and personal hygiene etc.

He said, “The House is concerned about the rapid rate at which the disease has spread across Lagos and several other parts of the country within such a short time, especially against the backdrop of reports that the government has run out of vaccines to effectively tackle it, even as the death toll continues to escalate in those States.

“There is an urgent need for quick action/intervention by the federal and respective state governments to curb the disease from further spread across the country.

“We are worried that unless urgent and proactive steps/measures are immediately adopted, the disease would spread to several other places and possibly escalate than imagined and this would not be good for the health of the citizenry and the country at large.”

Recall that the outbreak of cholera in Lagos State, fast spreading to other states of the federation is raising serious concerns amongst the citizens and stakeholders.

Many deaths have been reported even to the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, the disease has spread to about 31 other states including other states including

Abia, Bayelsa, Bauchi, Cross River, Delta, Imo, Nasarawa, Katsina and Zamfara States, amongst others.