“The FMOH hereby confirms that there is no Ebola Virus Disease in Nigeria, and thus Nigeria remains Ebola free. The general public is, however, advised to continue to observe good hygienic behavior that includes hand washing, hand sanitisation and general environmental cleanliness,” the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Linus Awute, said on Friday at a press conference to clarify the issue.
Also, the management of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) has also described as false and misleading the rumours making the rounds that there is an existence of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease in the hospital. was still being awaited, the victim died of haemorrhagic fever and not EVD as speculated.
The dead victim, who was identified as Eyamba, was a 200-level student of the Department of Political Science in the University of Calabar.
The Nigerian Tribune however gathered on Friday that Eyamba’s sister, whose name could not be ascertained, was also said to have contacted the same ailment and is recuperating in their family’s resident in the Calabar-South area of the Cross River State capital.
Speaking during a sensitisation workshop for workers of UCTH and other health agencies in the state, the Chairman of Medical Advisory Committee of the institution, Dr. Queeneth Kalu, said the information on the EVD existence in the hospital was false.
She said, however, that a temporary out-patient accident and emergency ward had been opened in the community medicine unit of the hospital to cater for emergency cases.
Kalu said, “The wrong information had been in the air in the past few days and it is not good for us. We have had to organise this sensitisation workshop for an update and also to acknowledge all those that had taken positive steps to allay fears.
“As we speak, a temporary accident and emergency unit has been opened, all these are temporary measures to attend to out-patients. Some of the information being peddled is false and they are spread by those who do not have information.”
But there was no explanation as to why the accident and emergency ward of the hospital was still under lock and keys. No reference was also made of the 15 health workers and patients that were quarantined on Tuesday.
However, a medical doctor who did not want his name in print confirmed that the result of the sample taken from Eyamba was not out. He said the parents of the dead victim were worried about the tension created by the death of their son.
“The parents of the deceased are worried that the sad news of their son’s death has created negative publicity for the hospital when his sister who had the same symptom had recovered in the house. The family is even begging the hospital authorities to release the corpse for them to go and bury”
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