No fewer than six people have been reported dead
and over 60 hospitalized in Amegu village, Ede-Oballa in Nsukka Local
Government Area of Enugu State following an alleged poisoning of pork meat they
took at a funeral ceremony.
According to reports from Ede-Oballa, more than 60
guests developed severe stomach problems after the funereal ceremony, prompting
their immediate hospitalization. Investigation by Sunday Sun showed that all
the popular hospitals in the university town of Nsukka including the Catholic
Mission- owned Bishop Shanahan have been flooded with the victims who were said
to be in critical conditions. A woman was said to be the first casualty of the
meat poisoning followed by three girls while it was feared that two others who
are not natives of the community also died.
It was gathered that a pig farmer who sold the
infected animal to a woman (name withheld) who hosted the funeral, was in
police net. Hospital sources expressed apprehension over the survival of the
victims, saying they ought to have been rushed to the hospital same night. “In
a situation like this, victims should be rushed to the hospital promptly for
early stomach wash”, said a hospital source. The source however said frantic
efforts are being made to save the lives of the victims Another reliable source
suspected that guests at the funeral might have been served the meat of a dead
pig injected by a veterinary doctor.
The source said the owner of the pig (name
withheld) had lied to the woman that the pig fell into a ditch. Apparently due
to the intimidating size of the pig and its relative cheapness, the woman
quickly entered a bargain and bought the meat not knowing it was sick and had
been treated recently by a veterinary doctor who also advised that in the event
of its death, the animal should be buried. A source quoted the doctor who has
been quizzed by the police as saying that he advised the pig farmer to bury the
animal if it died within three weeks of the injection.
The tragic incident has caused tension in Nsukka
zone where pigs are used at funeral ceremonies as an imperative and status
symbol. It was gathered that since the incident, guests at burial ceremonies in
the area have been avoiding pork. This has created problems for pig farmers who
have lost patronage due to the tragedy.
Our reporter could not reach the veterinary doctor
at the time of filing this report. A senior police officer attached to the
Nsukka Urban Police Command said that some of the guests and the pig farmer
were helping the police in their investigation.
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