Lassa fever: Lagos govt urges residents to obey sanitation laws

The Lagos State Ministry of Information and Strategy has enjoined residents of the state to avert Lassa fever and other diseases by obeying the state’s sanitation laws.
The ministry’s Director, Public Enlightenment and Community Relations, Mr Oluwatoyin Adeni-Awosika, gave the advice, Tuesday, in Lagos.
“This is Lassa fever, don’t think it is gone because it is an environmental sanitation matter.
“Wash your hands, keep clean environments. Rats find it very difficult to live in clean areas when there are no rags, there are no loose foods thrown away, there are no refuse bins overfilled, there is no blocked drainage (system).
“The rat when it has nothing to eat it moves away. Anywhere that is very neat, you can never find any rat there.
“Simple basic hygiene is what we keep preaching; you yourself be clean, then your own homes let them be clean, your immediate external environment be clean.
“Then the larger place, your work place, everywhere is clean, you rest assured these things would be cut by well over 70 per cent.
“All these strategies would keep Lassa fever away.In fact keeping strictly within the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation laws, you are sure Lassa Fever and other diseases would be kept at bay.’’
Adeni-Awosika said that the ministry usually sensitised people to the imperatives of personal hygiene and environmental sanitation at town hall meetings organised by the various groups.
Such sensitisation, according to him, is also being achieved by visiting hospitals, schools and attending other large gatherings.