…As Medical expert warns against Heatwave via overcrowding
Gladys Nweke
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has warned Nigerians of the booming organ harvest in parts of the Middle East, urging them to beware of fake foreign travel agencies.
According to a press statement signed by Mr Ikechukwu Attah, National Protocol Officer, IOM-Nigeria, these fake agencies promise their victims work abroad and help with their travel documents, only to put them in harms way.
He said “Beware of fake foreign agencies that promise work abroad. They process your papers, pay your ticket and then take you abroad in the pretence that they want to get you a job there for you.
“Instead, they end up killing their victims and harvesting all the valuable body parts.
“A lot of people were offered jobs in the Middle East but up to now their family members cannot trace their whereabouts” Attah said.
He said that the body parts black market was now booming in parts of the Middle East, and advised prospective migrants to always go through proper channels to avoid falling victim.
“The body parts black market business is booming in Middle East.
“One kidney now costs 262,000 dollars, heart costs 119,000 dollars and liver costs 157,000 dollars.
“Let our children and grandchildren be aware of these evil devices” he advised.
In the meantime, Dr. Chigozie Ubani, a medical practitioner in Umuahia, the Abia capital, has warned Nigerians to avoid overcrowding in view of the current heatwave being experienced in the country.
Ubani gave the advice in an interview with Newsmen in Port Harcourt, during a one-day sensitization on how to curb the heatwave on Monday, saying that the measure would help to reduce the risk of the spread of communicable diseases, among other infections.
The physician, who works in the Abia Government House Clinic, Umuahia, urged people to take measures to ensure adequate ventilation at home and public buildings by making sure that windows and doors were kept open.
He said, “In this period of heat, we should allow free flow of air in our environment so as to reduce the risk of contraction of diseases and other infections associated with overcrowding”
Ubani also called for proper waste disposal and desilting of the drains to ensure free flow of water as rains begin to set in.
“We are now in April and the rainy season is gradually setting in. There are also diseases that are prevalent during the rainy season” he said.
He said that the vectors, especially mosquitoes, breed and thrive in stagnant water in gutters and potholes.
“So you find out that during this period there is also a prevalence of malaria due to the increase in the number of Anopheles mosquitoes” Ubani said.
He further warned against indiscriminate dumping of refuse around residential areas to check the breeding of infectious parasites.
He advised people to maintain good hygiene in order to avoid possible outbreak.
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