… As UNICEF begins healthcare service to prevent cholera outbreak
Report by SHAFII ADAMS
Following last week’s flood disaster in Mokwa Local Government Area, the Governor of Niger state, Mohammed Umaru Bago has commended the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for proactive response and support for victims..
While commending the UNICEF after visiting some resettlement areas in Mokwa town, Governor Bago who was represented by his State Deputy,, Comrade Yakubu Garba said the responses and gestures towards the affected persons have further showed that there is hope for the people.
It should be recalled that the disaster which occurred on Wednesday night through Thursday has the death toll of 160 as the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) and locals have continued to recover corpses with over 100 people still missing and several properties submerged.
According to him “I want to commend you (UNICEF) and other organisations for your interventions and support to our people.
“We will not take this for granted, right from when the incident took place, you were proactive and you are very much on ground. We commend you.”
He also urged the UNICEF to be patient with the people, adding that, “most of them are still traumatised and would need some level of psychological support and guidance”.
Responding after she received the Deputy Governor at the UNICEF tent, the UNICEF Water and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Specialist, Kaduna Office, Mrs. Theresa Pamma said the organization is on ground to ensure the people have access to healthcare services and to prevent any form of disease outbreak.
While commiserating with the government and the people of the State, the UNICEF Specialist assured that “we are here to support the people and we will do the best that we can to ensure they are okay”.
“We are going to support in the area of hygiene and quality water; we will scale up sanitation so that we can curb any form of disease outbreak like cholera”.
She further said, the UNICEF will do all it can in ensuring children are not abused while in the camps.