Federal Capital Territory Health and Human Services Secretariat (FCTHHSS) has said that the management is set to take further measures to intervene and rescue residents of Ruga community from a strange illness that struck the area three months ago with inexplicable signs of blindness.
A visit to the makeshift community, 2 kilometres away from the Abuja popular city gate, said to be home to about 3000 people, mostly of the Hausa, Fulani, Tiv and Gwandara natives revealed that up to 60 persons, both children and adults have been affected.
Reacting to the strange illness, the acting Secretary of FCT Health and Human Services Secretariat, Dr.
Mohammed Mai, stated that while the secretariat had taken an emergency medical mission to the area when the illness was first reported, it was compelled to do a follow up to ensure that the situation was completely controlled.
Mai said the initial diagnosis of about 20 persons carried out in the community showed some allergies, suspected to have been borne out of untidy environment.
He noted the community’s lack of healthcare facilities, is because the area is an unplanned squatter settlement.
He said: “When they visited in August, they had about 20 cases.
Up till now, we have not been able to establish the cause of the allergy.
The issue of water supply in that community is a major consideration.
“The area is a squatter settlement.
There are no facilities in the place.
It has a makeshift settlement and their major source of water supply is the pond, which both human and animals use, although there is a commercial borehole.
As at last intervention, the public health department has provided some interventions, such as eye drops, and others.” Speaking earlier, FCT Director, Public Health Department, Dr.
Humphrey Okoroukwu stated that the initial interventions carried out in the community by his office in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and some Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) had brought relief to the residents.
He further said apart from the eye drops and other medication that were distributed to the affected persons, FCT administration had given directives that more surveillance be carried out in the area to ensure that human lives were not lost to the outbreak of the strange illness.
