Family of Monkeypox victim who committed suicide in Bayelsa blasts hospital

The identity of the Monkeypox victim who committed suicide in Bayelsa State, has been revealed after his family blasted the hospital the man was in.





According to a new report by The Nation newspaper, the Monkeypox victim who committed suicide at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH), Okolobiri in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State has been identified as Mr. Perekebina Biu.

Biu was receiving treatment in the isolation ward of the hospital when he reportedly hanged himself with a rope.

It was gathered that the deceased until the incident was the Treasurer of the Agbere Youth body in Sagbama Local Government Area and was married with three children.

His father, it was learnt, hails from Patani in Delta state while his mother is from Agbere community.




Agbere was reportedly recovering from the Monkeypox disease he contracted in Yenagoa before he took his life.

Family sources, who spoke in confidence to The Nation, blasted the management of NDUTH.

They accused the hospital management of negligence wondering how a patient in a quarantine centre could take his life easily without the knowledge of doctors and nurses.

A source said:

“The late victim was in the hospital for treatment. And he was responding to treatment though. But come to think about it, how did it happen?
“The Monkeypox victims were supposed to be in an isolated area. Where were the Doctors, nurses and other staff? Where did he get the rope? The hospital management has a question to answer.”
The deceased, according to family sources had no record of a mental case.

The Bayelsa State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Ebitimitula Etebu, had said the deceased was among the 21 suspected cases of ‘Monkeypox’ that were being managed at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH).

He expressed regret that the patient took his own life despite speedily recovering from the disease.

He sympathised with the family and said that a committee had been put in place to evaluate his past and recent clinical and social history. Adding that the examination would determine “if there were undisclosed mental illness or personal family problem that could have justified the suicide”.

Army denies vaccinating children in Anambra

Earlier today, some parents in Rivers state stormed various schools to withdraw their wards after rumors made the rounds that some military officers were going from school to school to 'inject the students with the monkeypox virus'. The Nigerian Army has released a statement denying claims of carrying out vaccination in schools. Read the statement below...

DISCLAIMER NOTICE

1. The attention of Headquarters 6 Division Nigerian Army has been drawn to some rumours making the rounds that some Nigerian Army Personnel are going round schools in Rivers State dressed in Military Camouflage uniforms with the intention of forcefully vaccinating students with an unknown substance. The callous and unpatriotic rumours spread by these enemies of State are, to say the least, despicable, deplorable and highly condemnable by all well meaning Nigerians as they are intended to cause pandemonium among the general public.

2. The authorities of 6 Division Nigerian Army wishes to inform the general public that while the Nigerian Army plans to undertake such gestures like free medical outreaches, sanitation exercises in host communities and distribution of educational materials as part of our community relations activities during the ongoing Operation CROCODILE SMILE II, these activities are yet to be conducted and will eventually be conducted with the consent of relevant authorities of designated communities and at venues and dates that will be duly communicated to the general public through future press releases and relevant posters.

3. For the purpose of emphasis, the Nigerian Army does not and will never carry out its medical outreaches or vaccination exercises for that matter in Schools. We can therefore categorically inform the public that the ongoing rumours about Nigerian Army Personnel going round schools in military camouflage to forcefully immunize school children are not true and should therefore be discountenanced with.




Additionally, members of the public are please requested to call 09072509436-8 to report any case of any impostor(s) that may be seen actually trying to commit such atrocities.

4. You are kindly requested to disseminate this information to the general public through your medium. Thank you for your usual cooperation.

AMINU ILIYASU
Colonel
Deputy Director Army Public Relations