Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed.
ARMSTRONG ALLAHMAGANI, Bauchi –
Executive Chairman, Primary Health Care Development Agency, Bauchi State, Dr. Rilwan Mohammed, has disclosed that seven people died of snakebites in Duguri village of Alkaleri local government area of Bauchi state in 2020.
Mohammed disclosed these at a press conference on the 2021 Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) Day celebration on Monday.
He also said that a strange disease has affected 10 people in Bara community in Kirfi local government area of the State and has caused them to have swollen legs.
“An issue that struck my mind was the issue of snake bite in Duguri in Alkaleri local government area of the state. Last year alone, we had seven people who died of this snake bite.
“One lady had her leg almost infected with the snake venom and there is an ulcer in the leg. We sent some people to give her some treatment there in Duguri. The place is an endemic area for snake bites.
“The governor, because of that, built a snake bite hospital there. Provision was made in the 2021 budget for the building of a staff quarters so that we can house some people there who will take care of these snake bites,” he said.
On the strange disease that has caused swollen legs, he said that the people in the community are worried about the development but he however, said that the Agency has sent out a team to go to the area and carryout an investigation.
He stated: “Just this morning (Monday), I was called that the legs of 10 people are swollen and we are investigating to know if it is lymphatic or onchocerciasis but it is not even an endemic area of onchocerciasis, that is Bara in Kirfi LGA.
“So, we asked our Programme Officers and Director Disease Control to send Surveillance Officers to go and find out what really is the problem. The people are worried because their legs are swollen.”
Mohammed lamented that although the NTDs affect many people across the world and in Nigeria, but despite this, less attention is given to them pointing out that some of these diseases are Onchocerciasis, Lymphatic Filariasis, Trachoma, Snake bite mitigation, Leprosy, Soul Transmitted Helminths, Shistosomiasis, among others.
He noted that these diseases are preventable adding that most of them have vaccinations and simple hygiene can take care of them.
The Executive Chairman lamented that: “I am very sad today because we are concentrating on other diseases like malaria, HIV/AIDS, COVID-19 among others and have forgotten about these diseases which we put together and call them Neglected Tropical Diseases and they are being neglected because governments are not giving them priority like others.”
He said that some of the drugs used for the treatment of these diseases are being misused by people for other purposes “and that’s the trouble we are facing around the world right now. Some of the drugs are called ‘magic drugs because they are used for many things.'”
According to him, out of the population of Bauchi State, over four million people have been affected by these NTDs.