Category: Online Special

…as government moves to tackle menace

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), about 1.7 billion cases of diarrhoea, is recorded annually worldwide. The disease, which WHO says is both preventable and treatable, is in the analysis of the world health body the second leading cause of death in children under five years, and is responsible for killing an estimated 525,000 children every year.

But in Ago Eegun community in Bariga area of Lagos State, diarrhoea does not only kill children under five years, it is also killing adults in concert with other environmental health challenges plaguing the dingy community, INNOCENT DURU and ADEOLA OGUNLADE, who visited the community, report.

Residents of Ago Eegun, a slum in Bariga area of Lagos State were thrown into mourning on the eve of New Year after one of their members reportedly slumped and died while defecating at the sea shore.

The deceased, who was said to be about 60 years old, was said to be suffering from diarrhoea and had defecated several times before he eventually died while defecating by the sea side that served as ‘public toilet’ for the residents whose ramshackle buildings have no toilet facilities.

Devastating as the death of the sexagenarian was for the people, checks showed that it did not serve a lesson for them to stop the unhealthy practice of defecating or dumping refuse at every available space in the community.

Our reporters who went round the community reported that odious stench oozed from all manner of watery and solid human wastes dumped in different corners of the squalid community where the female members’ primary occupation is to roast and sell fish in the unkempt open spaces.

Ruing the death of the late sexagenarian, a member of the community said: “It was a huge shock, especially because it happened on the eve of the new year. The development spoilt the new year fun. There is no way a member of the community would die and you roll out the drums to celebrate the new year.

Even if one had plans to host an elaborate new year party, one would naturally make it a solemn one in honour of the dead.

“We are not comfortable with defecating in open spaces. If the facilities were there, we would not be defecating at the sea side, expecting the sea to flush it away.”
Findings showed that prior to the death of the sexagenarian, dirrhoea, measles and convulsion had been responsible for a high rate of child mortality in the area.

One of the residents who identified herself simply as Mama Sejiro admitted that much in a conversation with one of our correspondents.

She said: “We used to lose many children to measles, diarrhea and convulsion and we are not happy about it. Nobody will be happy to see the children die.
“But I must say that the menace has reduced since we started getting some medication. We have also been visiting the health centre where we get enlightenment on what we need to do to avert problems.

“We had a child who contracted measles recently. After some time of treating him here, the father, who lives elsewhere, sent for him and the mother had to take the baby to him.

“We really don’t have any source of potable water. It is the water we buy from some Hausa hawkers that we use for all our domestic needs. We also don’t have toilets. What we do is to defecate into a container and later go to the public toilet around the market to dispose it.”

Another member of the community who roasts fish for sale also corroborated Mama Sejiro’s claims, saying: “Many children in the community suffer from measles and other waterborne diseases. A number of residents have lost their children as a result of this.

“When the children have such challenges, we either take them to the health centre or treat them the local way. There are herbs we use for their treatment if we can’t take them to the hospital for financial reasons.”

Asked if the dilapidated buildings they live in are well ventilated, she said: “Air does not enter the house, but we are managing it. My husband, two children and I occupy the apartment.”

Our reporters visited the clinic of one of the doctors in the community, but the nurse who was on duty said he had travelled to his home town.

Prodded to speak on their mode of operation, the young girl, who spoke smattering Yoruba, said: “We use both herbs and orthodox medicine to treat patients (she went in and brought out a polythene bag containing a large quantity of paracetamol tablets). We take delivery here.

We have two rooms here and occasionally admit patients.” She, however, declined response when she was asked further questions, saying: “I don’t understand much of Yoruba or English. I only speak French and my local dialect.”

Decrying the condition the people are living in, a pastor in the community, Olujoba Abayomi Lanre, said: “I have a church here where I work as a clergyman. If you check the back of the church, you will see the whole place littered with refuse and excreta because they have no toilet or waste dump. The community needs a toilet. A functional toilet will reduce diarrhoea by 38 per cent and hand washing by 40 per cent. Just these two would reduce diarrhoea by 78 per cent.

“There is high level of illiteracy here and early marriage among the people. This is why the community is densely populated. Besides, there is also a high level of fertility and mortality rate too.

“The people often prefer to patronise native doctors instead of taking their sick members to the hospital. Most of the time, they lock up their sick relations at home and bring in native doctors to treat them.

“There was a day that one of them was sick to the point of death but he would not go to the hospital. When I told him to go to the hospital, he said he was already receiving treatment from a native doctor. It took intense persuasion before he eventually agreed to go to the hospital. His case is a reflection of the general attitude of the people to medical care.

“They prefer to stay at home to be treated by local doctors. This is one of the contributory factors to the high mortality rate in the area.”
Stressing an urgent need for a separate health centre for the community, Olujoba added: “The community needs a health centre because of the teeming population. Bariga has three health centres in Oloja, Ilaje CMS and Ashogbon. It is the Ashogbon Health Centre that serves this community.

“The crowd is often too much as the people from this community alone constitute more than enough crowd for the health centre.
“The community does not have a good drainage system. The condition is always terrible during the rainy season because the surge from the sea envelopes the community and eats up our legs because the water is salty.”

Also lamenting the living conditions of the people, a respondent who gave her name simply as Bayo, said: “The living condition of the people is deplorable. This is a community where a man has two or more wives but lives in a cubicle with his wives and children. Many of them have no mattress to sleep on. They sleep on mats and, in some cases, cartons or ordinary planks.

“In spite of their deplorable living condition, they have continued to procreate like rabbits. They don’t believe in family planning. For them, once you are married, your wife can afford to have many children, so they don’t believe in family planning.

“This is where you find a father whose children are already having children also still having new children. They are not concerned about family planning. A woman here can give birth to more than 10 children and she is not tired. They have no decent place for bathing as well. There are times some of the female residents have their baths naked in open places, and you have to cover your face to avoid the unpalatable sight.

“They really need urgent intervention because the air they breathe in and the food they eat are polluted. And the health hazard is not restricted to the people in the community, because others who live outside the area come in to buy food items from them. Some people buy and eat their roast fish which flies that had feasted on excreta are perching on. This could pose serious health challenges to the larger community.”

In spite of the horrible condition The Nation found the community, the Vice Chairman of Ago Eegun Community Development Association, Nasiru Adeniyi, said the place had become much better than it once was.

He said: “This place used to be dirtier than it is now. It started getting better with the intervention of the CDA (Community Development Association) and a non-governmental organisation called Save the Children. They used to give water guard, ORS and zinc to the people because of the mortality rate which used to be very high in the community.

“The scourge has drastically reduced now because of their intervention. The people, as you must have heard, don’t have toilets, potable water or refuse dumps. They depend on the water some Hausa hawkers bring for them. They always defecate at the sea bank. Flies perch on the excreta and go on to perch on their food and also lay eggs on it. This is the primary cause of diarrhoea and high mortality rate in the area.

“Before now, the sea used to wash their faeces away, but the situation has changed with the sand filing of the sea. When the people now excrete and dump it around, it would remain there until it decays because the sea that washes away the excreta has been fenced off with sand filling. This is capable of compounding the health situation of the people.”

He added: “We are glad that the NGO is also intervening in this area as it is already seeking the support of the land owners to construct modern toilets for the people. The moment this is done, the health hazards that the people are exposed to will reduce. If we have other groups or individuals coming to provide refuse dumps and potable water for the community, the residents’ problems will be over.”

The traditional ruler of the community, Agemo Akapo, said he was not happy about the mortality rate among his people. “I am not happy about the development but there is a great improvement now,” he said.

“We were not having refuse heaps around the community like this before now. It is the work (sand filling) they are doing that brought the refuse to this place. We have drawn the attention of the contractor to it and he has promised to do something about it immediately he returns from the Christmas holiday.”

The Lagos State Government says it is currently carrying out a pilot study to carry out a holistic reform in all the 800 slums in the state. The Special Adviser to the governor on Primary Health Care, Dr. Olufemi Onanuga, in a chat with The Nation, said: “Government is trying its best. Ago-Egun is a blighted area and we have over 100 slums in Lagos. We realise the plight of the people living in the riverine areas just like Ago-Egun. Lagos is surrounded by water, and along the riverside areas, we have blighted areas that are slums where people live. They are in Lagos and we must take care of their health.”

He noted that money has been approved to do a pilot study that covers over 800 communities along the riverine areas, saying: “The project extends to Epe and Badagry and all the coastline areas. The governor of Lagos State approved the study which started last year December and would end in March, 2018.

“We have specialists working with me on this study. Oriba community, key staff in the PHCs and others are on board on this project. Our findings will help us understand their health problems and needs, and we would thereafter know how to take care of them.”

He added: “In our study, we will be able to know how many children have been immunized, especially for the six childhood diseases like cholera, typhoid and other water borne diseases, among others.

“We will teach them water sanitation, health education and enlightenment. We will also use the study to know what drugs are needed, for instance ORT therapy, and we will know how to extend real treatment to all the 800 communities.

“Lagos State Government has approved the provision of three ambulance boats to get on-the-spot assessment of the health needs in riverine areas, and Ago-Egun will be captured in the scheme.

“Each of these ambulances would cater for the three senatorial districts in Lagos, which are Senatorial District Central (Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland, Surulere, Apapa, Eti-Osa), Senatorial District East (Kosofe, Ikorodu, Ibeju Lekki and Shomolu) and Senatorial District West (Agege, Ajeromi/Ifelodun, Alimosho, Amuwo, Apapa, Badagry, Epe, Eti-Osa, Ibeju-Lekki, Ifako-Ijaiye, Ikeja, Ikorodu Kosofe).

“Health workers will use the speed boat to render health care services to the riverine areas. We are monitoring Ago-Egun and putting our searchlight and surveillance in the area to avoid any outbreak.”

Speaking on the commitment of health workers in the state to their duties, Onanuga said: “I do random visits to the PHCs, and I am impressed with the effort being put in place by the workers in the centres. Last year, I punished some workers who were found wanting at their duty posts, and that has sent a serious warning to others in PHCs in Lagos, because when you are not on your duty post, I punished you without any pleading.

“Our work is so essential and workers in PHCs must be up and about. Today, I can hardly find any culprit because my recent visits show that many of the health workers are on their duty post. Matrons are okay in PHCs.

“We have some PHCs that work 24 hours, while some work for eight hours. The Comprehensive Primary Health Care centres work for 24 hours and they have doctors on ground. We cannot have doctors everywhere. Doctors in any part of the world are never enough.

“Matrons, qualified nurses, community health officers and extension workers can handle community health needs and challenges except there are standing orders.
“As we speak, we have 293 functional Primary Health Care Centre across the state. Before the emergence of Akinwunmi Ambode, PHCs had gone down and we are working hard to ensure that the PHCs in Lagos provide the needed health care services to the people.

“We will impress it on the local government that covers Ago Egun to sink borehole so that the people can access quality water. We will also build functional toilets. We assure them that we will work on that.”

-Kwara women vegetable famers

Sina Fadare in this report x-rays the plights of women vegetable farmers, who for years have tilled the bank of the Maaro River at Ganmo village in Kwara State. The women, who are bonded by the same vision, passion and desire to survive, share their stories of struggle, achievements and government’s seeming neglect.

they had migrated from various villages and communities within and outside the state to settle at the base of Maaro River in Ganmo village, Kwara State, where they are guaranteed the benefit of the flowing river to water their vegetable, particularly during the dry season.

However, they are disadvantaged, cheated, neglected and abandoned at the point of their need by the Kwara State Government, with endless yearly unfulfilled promises. Common watering cans, which are very vital equipment to their vocation but which they can hardly afford, have remained elusive. Once every four years, when elections are drawing near, government officials gather them under a tree, with cameras beaming on their faces, promising to meet all their demands; but as soon as elections are over, they are back to square one.

Ordinarily, theirs should be a success story, considering that their needs are minimal; unfortunately they were abandoned and could therefore not upgrade their vocation like they envisaged. The farmers, who spread along the base of Maaro River to engage in vegetable farming round the year, are exclusively women, majority of them single mothers trying hard to raise fund from their meager sales of vegetable, to educate their children and generally make a living.

They are hard-working, determined and highly resourceful in their own way; even without any help whatsoever from the government. They shunned all forms of indolence despite their predicament and the temptation to go begging on the streets. To them, there is dignity in labour, and they are very proud of their vocation and their little contribution to the economy of the state.

Though disappointed that they have been abandoned, they hold onto the ray of hope that one day in the not too distant future, a messiah in form of a good government that will appreciate their economic contribution will surface in the state and they will have a new story to tell.

Despite the harsh and extremely cold harmattan that was preponderant in Ilorin and it’s environ when this reporter visited Ganmo, the farmers were already on their farms as early as 6:30am to water their vegetable bed. The farm was a beehive of activities when this reporter visited on 27th of December, 2017.

Their children were denied the early morning sleep peculiar to their contemporaries, as they equally stormed the farm to assist their mothers to fetch water from the stream to water the vegetable beds. To them, it is a daily ritual they must do to assist their mothers in order to fight off poverty.

The activities in the farm varies; while some are tendering the vegetable fields; some are tiling the ground in preparation for a new vegetable bed while others are harvesting their vegetable in preparation for the market.

The Nation gathered that most of the market days of the villages and towns around are targeted before farmers harvest their vegetables, so that they can have good bargaining. Aside this, Ganmo market, which comes up every five days, is equally a target to the farmers due to its closeness to the farm, which eliminates the stress that comes with transportation and cost.

Mama Aisha is a popular trying hard to raise fund from their meager sales of vegetable, to educate their children and generally make a living.

They are hard-working, determined and highly resourceful in their own way; even without any help whatsoever from the government. They shunned all forms of indolence despite their predicament and the temptation to go begging on the streets. To them, there is dignity in labour, and they are very proud of their vocation and their little contribution to the economy of the state.

Though disappointed that they have been abandoned, they hold onto the ray of hope that one day in the not too distant future, a messiah in form of a good government that will appreciate their economic contribution will surface in the state and they will have a new story to tell.

Despite the harsh and extremely cold harmattan that was preponderant in Ilorin and it’s environ when this reporter visited Ganmo, the farmers were already on their farms as early as 6:30am to water their vegetable bed. The farm was a beehive of activities when this reporter visited on 27th of December, 2017.

Their children were denied the early morning sleep peculiar to their contemporaries, as they equally stormed the farm to assist their mothers to fetch water from the stream to water the vegetable beds. To them, it is a daily ritual they must do to assist their mothers in order to fight off poverty.

The activities in the farm varies; while some are tendering the vegetable fields; some are tiling the ground in preparation for a new vegetable bed while others are harvesting their vegetable in preparation for the market.

The Nation gathered that most of the market days of the villages and towns around are targeted before farmers harvest their vegetables, so that they can have good bargaining. Aside this, Ganmo market, which comes up every five days, is equally a target to the farmers due to its closeness to the farm, which eliminates the stress that comes with transportation and cost.

Mama Aisha is a popular farmer at Maaro River bank; the visually impaired middle-aged woman migrated to Maaro river bank from Oke –Ode village in Ajase area of Kwara State. Her challenge has not stopped her from her vocation as a vegetable farmer. Narrating how she is coping as a farmer, she explained that there is dignity in labour and that she prefers what she is doing to roaming the street begging for alms.
“One of my sons will lead me to the farm where l will do the work for the day, depending on what l want to do on the farm. I know how to till the ground in preparation for a vegetable bed. In the same way, he would help me to fetch water from the river, which l then use to wet the vegetable bed if the need arises. Though it has not been easy, but l have had to cope with this routine since my eye became bad so that my children will not suffer.”
She explained that she had to relocate to the base of the river when she saw that other women were sustaining their families from proceeds from farming and selling vegetables. ”Some of my colleagues do help me, especially when it is time to harvest my vegetable.” She explained.
Though she is just about two years in the trade, Mama Aisha will appreciate it if government could come to the aid of all the vegetable farmers in the area because they all have the peculiar problems of not been able to procure fertilizer and watering cans to make their job easier.
To Madam Mulika Saka who migrated from Ogbondoko in Afon area of the state to the farm site six years ago, it has been a good decision, especially since she had nobody to assist her in training her children.

“I send my children to school through the proceeds I get from the farm. That is why you can see them around this early morning to assist me to fetch water from the river to wet my vegetable beds. It is a normal routine for them anytime they are on holidays.”

Madam Saka, who is not happy with the government of Kwara State for pretending not to be aware of their suffering said, “We used to see government presence anytime election is approaching. We have a cooperative society and we usually have our meeting dates where we discuss our collective problems and how to go about them. They will come to this meeting to promise us everything but as soon as their political ambition was achieved, we will not see any of them again.”

Speaking in the same vein, Madam Alarape Jimoh, who relocated to the village from Idi Ape area of Ilorin about 20 years ago, argued that their faith has been put in the hands of God because she has seen it all.

“I have been a vegetable farmer at the base of this river in the last twenty years and l can tell you authoritatively that all what we are doing here is self-effort. We are earning a living by producing vegetable here throughout the year round, but the little assistance we are expecting from government are not forthcoming. That is why you can see all of us using bucket to fetch water from the river to wet our vegetable.” She explained.

She lamented that most of them are widows who cannot afford to see their children going on the street to beg; therefore, she said “we had to form a cooperative society and resulted to thrift contribution to assist any of us in need and boost our economic livelihood.

“Ours is a sad story because any time we learnt there are opportunities available for small scale farmers like us, we usually go there but at the end of the day nothing comes out of it. We are tired of endless promises from governments, who will at the end of the day not do anything.”

The veteran vegetable farmer said that they, as a body, have resorted to self-help in order to be able to continue producing vegetable so that their survival can be guaranteed.

From one farmer to the other, The Nation found that they have common problems which they seemingly cannot solve themselves, unless the government comes to their aid. The most important daunting is how to access small loans that would enable them expand the scope of their business and possibly engage more hands to assist in tilling the ground and tending the vegetable to maturity.

Speaking on the journey so far, the leader of the cooperative society, Alhaja Olajumoke Atobisan explained that there are lots of assistance the government can render, to help create employment opportunities for people in the village.

“If there is opportunity for us to get fertilizer, small loans, and equipment like watering can and improved seedling, it will go a long way in helping us contribute our own little quota to the development of agriculture in the state.

“You can see that our children are all scattered on the farm because there is vacation; at times one needs between three to four people to assist on the farm, especially the tilling of the ground. I am happy that you can see for yourself how some of our women have been tiling the ground since morning. This job can create employment opportunities if government is ready to assist us.” She explained

The Maaro River is very significant to the people of Ganmo. Its antecedent dates back to shortly after the death of Afonja, the 6th Are-Ona kakanfo of Yoruba land and founder of Ilorin, who was killed as a result of the treachery of his friend Alimi. When Afonja fell, most of his warriors and family had to flee Ilorin to save their lives. When they arrived at Maaro River, they settled at the base of the river to start a new lease of life.

Speaking to The Nation on the plight of the vegetable farmers, a community leader and President of Afonja Descendants Union, (ADU), Comrade Abdul-kareem Olola Kasum said the Maaro Farmers’ Co-operative Society was formed in 2003 to give a new lease of life to the activities of the women vegetable farmers.

Olola-Kasum, who is resident in the community, explained that the women need all the assistance the state and local government can offer to help them step up their business. “Every day I see these women struggling to survive with the little proceed from their vegetable farming, they send their children to school and even contribute to the economy of the state, as people troop in here every five days to buy fresh vegetables.”

He however expressed fear over the future of Maaro River due to the indiscriminate construction of houses on the river bed, noting that host local government, Ifelodun Local Government should discourage this so that the river can retain its originality and at the same time continue to serve the vegetable farmers.

The Nation gathered that Agriculture was put under Economic Affairs in the 2016 budget of Kwara State along with Energy, Works & Transport, Information and Communication. This gulped N37.7 billion representing 32.5 per cent of the total budget of N116.2billion. However there was no deliberate policy in the budget that gave room for the development of small scale farming system in the state.

Speaking on the issues raised by the farmers, the Kwara State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Goke Bamidele pointed out that some of the farmers did not access the right information that would afford them the opportunity to know what the government was doing.

Bamidele said if they had approached the Ministry of Agriculture to table their plights as a body, the ministry would have acquainted them with the available agricultural windows which they could tap into, adding that the ministry usually goes on air on the state radio to update stakeholders on such opportunities.

“They will have to come forward to know what is happening, whether we are going to connect them to the Bank of Agriculture or similar agency or other Federal Government interventions.

There is this agric window at the Federal Ministry of Commerce where soft loans are given to co-operative farmers society such as theirs. They are free to come over for such opportunities.”

He explained that the facilities are already on the ground and what the farmers need as a body, is to approach the necessary agency that will assist them. “The state has a soft loan agric window that they can access anytime they are ready. Information is very crucial here, they need to seek for information on all the opportunities they can benefit from government.”

Speaking on how best to tackle the plight of the vegetable farmers at Ganmo, Prof. Kolawole, who is Provost of the School of Agriculture, Kabba noted that the farmers can be empowered through their co-operatives by giving them improved vegetable seeds, helping them purchase watering-cans, foliage fertilizer at Aleshinloye in Ibadan etc.

According to him the government could even engage experts in vegetable production to teach them the latest in dry season vegetable production, adding that this will go a long way in improving their production.