From Musa Kutama, Calabar
The Cross River State Commissioner for Health, Dr Egbe Ayuk, has dismissed insinuations of the outbreak of Monkeypox as alleged by the state in a statement made by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), which was described as fundamentally erroneous.
The Commissioner confirmed that there is no evidence of either Mpox, Cholera, or Lassa spotted in the state.
Dr Ekpe Ayuk, who confirmed to journalists on Thursday in Calabar, said the recent update from the NCDC had to do with previous occurrences of Mpox in the State.
The Commissioner posited that the last notification of Monkeypox, otherwise known as Mpox, in the state was in March 2024, noting that the situation was sufficiently resolved completely, maintaining: “There is currently no incident of Mpox in the State.”
“However, against the current declaration of Mpox as a global health emergency by World Health Organization (WHO), the Cross River Government has put in place proactive measures to prevent and mitigate any incident of the disease and protect citizens of the State,” he remarked.
He outlined some of the steps to include the Development of an Incident Action Plan and Emergency Preparedness Plan which is near conclusion; ongoing training in all local government areas for community informants, and surveillance officers sponsored by WHO in collaboration with the State Ministry of Health; training of all Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers by NCDC in collaboration with State Ministry for Health told to hold on Thursday 22nd and Friday, 23rd August on Mpox and other priority diseases; Health Promotion and Surveillance Units of State Ministry for Health in collaboration with NCDC, and WHO is intensifying awareness creation through media sensitization, awareness creation in markets, schools and communities and hot spots LGAs.
“We are moving round all our health facilities (tertiary, secondary and primary) this August to sensitize health care workers on Mpox and other priority diseases,” he added.
The Commissioner passionately appealed for support from media houses and media practitioners in the state to enable the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders to intensify awareness creation and media engagements.
Dr Ayuk informed that the Ministry of Health’s collaboration with NCDC has positioned a significant number of response commodities in health facilities at Mpox hot spot local government areas in the state.
