Ebola Outbreak: The Role of Politicians

Ebola Outbreak: The Role of Politicians

It is now a known fact that Ebola is one of the deadliest diseases known to mankind. Like HIV, it is a virus; however it kills within a shorter time, compared to the former. Ebola has been proved to spread through fluids such as sweat, saliva and blood from a human being or animal that is infected with the virus. This deadly virus is spreading and rapidly making a mark on the West African map. So far, over 1000 lives have been lost to this dreaded ailment. This is a great concern as our day to day lives revolve around physical contact with people around us.

Prince Tonye Princewill is calling on all his supporters and all Nigerians not to panic or act out of fear, but carry out their various activities with wisdom. He has therefore advised all to take the following practical precautions:

1. Keep your environment clean and rodent free.
2. Stay away from raw meat of fruit bats, bush rats, chimpanzees and gorillas; as these particular animals have been found to spread the virus. If contact has to be made, proper protective clothing should be put on and if meat has to be consumed, it should be properly cooked before consumption.
3. Citizens are advised to keep clear from infected persons and if anyone has the symptoms, medical personnel need to be alerted by calling the approved help lines (see below)
4. Minimize human bodily contact (especially in areas with confirmed Ebola infection cases) and wash hands thoroughly with soap and water before handling any food. NAFDAC approved hand sanitizers are welcome.
5. Families that have lost a loved one to the disease should stay away from the dead body. The advised burial method is cremation.
6. Citizens should educate their immediate environment on causes and symptoms of Ebola. Likewise he wants to appeal to active politicians to use the political tempo to educate the constituents in their jurisdiction, on the dreaded virus; “Politics needs to work for the people, especially at times like this”.

Due to the rapid display of its symptoms, the Ebola virus can be quickly identified in an area. According to WHO, Ebola symptoms include, a sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding. Some of the symptoms are similar to those experienced when suffering from malaria, typhoid fever, shigellosis, cholera, leptospirosis, plague, rickettsiosis, relapsing fever, meningitis, hepatitis and other viral hemorrhagic fevers.

Prince Tonye has advised all citizens not to panic, be sensitive to your environment and report any suspected case to your nearest medical center. The Rivers State Emergency help line “112” (toll free), which was initiated years ago by Prince Tonye Princewill is still very functional and available to attend to such cases. Kindly call the number to report suspected cases or any other emergency. The Rivers State ministry of Health has also setup a committee to investigate and  tackle any unlikely case;  simply call, 08167733939, 07036321076 and 08032652437  to speak with the state medical agents.

Thank you

And God Bless

  

Wabiye Idoniboyeobu

Personal Assistant – Media and Publicity