Benue govt shuts down private school over outbreak of strange illness

 

The Benue State Government has shut down a secondary school in the state, Vaatia College in Makurdi, following the outbreak of a strange illness that left nine students with mild paresis.

The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Joseph Ngbea, who confirmed the incident in a statement, said some of the patients have been discharged while few others are still hospitalized.

“We got a report about the outbreak of the unknown disease and we went to the Teaching Hospital where three of the students were on admission. What we saw that the children had Paresis – weakness of the limbs.

“We looked at the possible causes because this country is almost certified free of Poliomyelitis.

“So, when we got there, it was confirmed that it was not Poliomyelitis. What we are looking at is ‘Golemba Syndrome’. It is a weakness that starts from the limbs upwards,” he said.

However, the Commissioner said the disease could be as a result of bacterial, fungal, or viral infection.