Abayomi
The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, on Sunday, disclosed that 25 cases of severe gastroenteritis confirmed to be caused by cholera were reported at Kirikiri Medium Security Prison.
The development was against the claim by the Nigerian Correctional Service on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, that the custodial centres nationwide were free of cholera.
The NCoS spokesman, Abubakar Umar, speaking with The PUNCH, had stated that the routine hygienic measures put in place in the correctional centres had helped to keep cholera out.
However, in a statement on Sunday, signed by the Director of Public Affairs, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Tunbosun Ogunbanwo, the commissioner reported “a small outbreak of 25 cases of severe gastroenteritis confirmed to be caused by cholera.”
He said urgent medical and environmental measures had been implemented successfully.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention also recorded 118 suspected cholera cases in Katsina State.
Available data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention showed as of June 24, 2024, there were 1,528 suspected cholera cases, 65 confirmed cases and 53 deaths across 107 local government areas in 31 states, reflecting a case fatality rate of 3.5 per cent since the beginning of the year.
