…Blame gas, not covid-19, for deaths
By Kelechi Esogwa-Amadi
Although the relaxing of the lockdown on their town by the Rivers State government has brought some relief to them, some residents of Bonny Island are still not satisfied following the imposition of a dusk to dawn curfew by the state government.
They are therefore calling on the Rivers State government to lift the curfew without further delay to enable them to continue with their businesses and normal lives fully, arguing that the curfew does not make much sense to them.
They maintained that the problem facing them and endangering their lives in Bonny is more of gas rather than coronavirus.
In a chat with TPCN yesterday in Port Harcourt, a resident of Bonny, Gracious Ude, who said she has lived in Bonny for eight years, likened the recent deaths in the gas-rich Island to those of dead fishes washed ashore three months ago, wondering why the state government could not do a thorough investigation of the causes of the deaths before concluding that it is coronavirus.
“From day one I didn’t believe the deaths are caused by covid-19. They did not do a proper investigation and they just concluded that it is covid-19. What about those fishes that died in the sea? Is it also corona that killed them? Are they not aware that it is a gas-related chemical that killed them?”
Gracious Ude, who said she hails from Abia State but works in Bonny, blamed oil and gas companies for the chemical-related deaths being witnessed in the area.
She said: “These oil companies are the ones responsible for this chemical and gas flare that are killing people in Bonny and they should do something about it. Gas filling and other complications in their operations are responsible for all the deaths we are witnessing there and it’s high time the government does something about it. Locking us up and down with curfew is not the solution we want.”
Gerald Gogo, an indigene of Bonny, questioned the rationale behind the lockdown and subsequent curfew when the state government did not see any reason to decontaminate and conduct house to house testing in the area.
Gerald added: “ As long as I’m concerned, the lockdown and this ongoing curfew imposed on us in Bonny are not justified. First, they could not decontaminate Bonny Island. Secondly, they did not conduct mass testing or house to house testing for covid-19 in order to know the actual number of those who are infected if at all there is coronavirus in Bonny. Now, that there is a curfew, what are they achieving> Nothing. And they say the number is increasing daily. So, is it not better to lift the curfew and set my people free to live their normal life?”
Another resident of Bonny appealed to the Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture to release the result of the test it allegedly conducted to ascertain the cause of the death of the fishes washed ashore in Bonny seas three months ago.
“That will give us an insight into the real cause of the deaths we are now witnessing in Bonny, believed to be coronavirus. Why am saying this is because it is possible that some people ate those dead fishes and that could be responsible for the health issues they are now having there. So, they should make that result known officially,” the resident said.
As at the time of filing in this report, the Rivers State Government still maintains that covid-19 is behind the deaths occurring in Bonny, as many health workers from the State Ministry of Health are currently in the Island, helping infected persons.
Meanwhile, the state government has not given any hint of when the curfew will be lifted.
