Tragedy: 68 People Die in Rivers State After Drinking Ogogoro(Locally Brewed Gin)

It was a tragic disclosure yesterday when Dr. Nnamdi Onye­kwere, Director, Primary Health­care Service, Ministry of Health, in port Harcourt told the public how about 68 persons in Rivers state died After drinking Ogogoro (locally-brewed gin)

The incident occurred penultimate Sunday, hit­ting three local government areas – Bonny, Gokana and Obio/Akpor simultane­ously.

The SUN news had it that However, the state House of Assembly and Nation­al Association of Resi­dent Doctors of Nigeria (NARD) have supported the ban placed by the Fed­eral Government on the sale of Ogogoro.

The House of Assembly had, after much delibera­tion, yesterday, summoned the Ministry of Health to appear before an Ad Hoc Committee of the House over the raging scourge of Ogogoro drink, which had claimed many lives in the state.

Leader of the House and sponsor of the motion, Mar­tins Amaewhule, raised the alarm that the local gin had claimed over 60 lives in the state, and called for an urgent intervention to fore­stall further deaths.

In the same vein, NARD in a statement issued in Port Harcourt, yesterday, and signed by its President, Dr. Dan Jumbo; Secretary, Dr. Daniel Gbujie and Public Relations Officer (PRO), Dr. Jimi Sodipo, called on the Federal government to apply stringent measures to curtail the production and distribution of the deadly product in the country.

NARD, while condoling with the families that suf­fered the loss, urged mem­bers of the public to desist from further sale and con­sumption of the drink.

"As we condole with the families, who suffer the unfortunate loss, we also call on the general public to please comply with the 0ver placed by the federal government on the sale of Ogogoro. "Even, without methanol, Ogogoro is a deadly poison and the need to sensitise the public to avoid its production, dis­tribution and consumption. This is to bring to an end the scale destruction caused by this poison (Ogogoro).

"And, we call on the fed­eral government to set up stringent measures that will further curtail the produc­tion and distribution of this deadly drink in our coun­try", NARD said.

The association com­mended the federal gov­ernment's agencies like National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and Rivers State Ministry of Health in the efforts in cur­tailing the mortality and morbidity associated with the consumption of local gin. It also urged federal government to prevail on state governments owing its members months of unpaid salaries, to prevent escalat­ed and prolonged problems.