By Olubunmi Omoogun – Chairman Senate Committee on health, Senator Olanrewaju Tejuoso representing Ogun Central senatorial district at Tuesday’s plenary session expressed that if nothing is immediately done to curtail further outbreak and spread of the Lassa virus disease, the disease would reach a magnitude where it could be declared a national emergency.
He made this known on the heels of recent outbreaks of the disease in about 10 states in Nigeria in January 2016.
Bauchi, Nassarawa, Niger, Kano, Edo, Taraba, Rivers, Plateau, Gombe and Oyo have recorded suspected cases of the Lassa Haemorrhagic Fever (LHF).
The Ogun Central Senator noted that ‘there was an outbreak within the first quarter of 2014 with at least 15 states affected with 319 cases and 20 deaths’.”We should kill corruption before corruption kills Nigeria, that’s the government popular saying but unfortunately, he said the rodents are already killing Nigerians even before the ‘corruption”.Speaking at the Senate chambers, Senator Lanre Tejuoso who is a medical doctor added that “Nigerians should be conscious and adhere to rules of personal hygiene and put in more effort to get rid of rodents from our environment to prevent the spread of the virus and report any case of persistent high fever to the nearest health centre”.
The ever reliable Ogun State Senator did not waste time in raising his voice at the floor of the Senate in order to curb the spread of the virus which has dealt some states in Nigeria a blow.
