BEVERLY HILLS, September 04, (THEWILL) – The Delta State Government has raised the alarm over what it described as the false claims being made by some individuals, especially traditional medical practitioners, purporting to have a cure for the Ebola Virus Disease.
In a statement issued Thursday by the State Commissioner for Information, Chike Ogeah, the Delta Government dismissed such claims as completely false, untenable and dangerous, saying they represent a threat to public health.
Maintaining that there is no known cure yet for the Ebola Virus Disease, the statement said:
“The attention of the Delta State Government has been drawn to claims by some individuals, especially traditional medicine practitioners and spiritual healers bordering on their purported ability to cure the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). These claims are completely false, untenable, dangerous and represent a threat to public health.”
Restating that there is no known cure yet for the Ebola Virus Disease, the statement urged the media, especially television and radio broadcast houses, to refrain from promoting any claim of cure for EVD by any unorthodox medical practitioner.
It warned that any jingle and promotional programme claiming to have the cure for EVD should no longer be broadcast.
“Traditional medical practitioners and spiritual healers are hereby warned to desist from making any claim of cure for EVD. Anybody that makes sure claims again will be considered a threat to public health and arrested by the relevant security agencies,” it added.
According to the statement, “The World Health Organisation (WHO) and health agencies in Nigeria have made it clear that observance of strict hygiene and health rules to stave off contact with the disease remain the best option.”
It noted that “Experts have also advised that regular washing of hands with soap, avoiding contact with infected persons and avoiding eating bush meat not sufficiently cooked will protect everybody from being infected with the disease.”
The statement disclosed that “The governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, CON, has constituted an Inter-Ministerial Ebola Virus Outbreak Preparedness and Response Committee to superintendent efforts at preventing an outbreak of EVD in Delta State.”
The Government therefore assured that there is no outbreak of EVD in the state, urging residents of the state to remain vigilant and observe basic rules of cleanliness.
It also urged anybody with information on probable outbreak of the disease to contact the Committee on the following numbers: 08037857479, 08063927202, 07037120510 and 08037438829. SMS Centre: 32581.
