Coronavirus patients in Gombe break out of isolation centre to protest ill treatment
The patients blocked a federal highway to complain about being neglected by the government.
Mohammed Buba, one of the patients, said it took three days after his diagnosis before a doctor attended to him [YouTube/Channels Television]
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![Osun State College of Technology OSCOTECH [MySchoolGist]](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg'%20width%3D'100'%20height%3D'100'%20data-ring-placeholder%3D'1'%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Osun State College of Technology OSCOTECH [MySchoolGist]")
The protesters barricaded the Gombe-Biu road, a highway linking Gombe State with neighbouring Borno, to express their dissatisfaction with the quality of care on offer.
An estimated 20 patients complained on the highway that the government has not been taking proper care of them.
Mohammed Buba, who described himself as the leader of the protesters, told Channels TV that it took three days after he arrived at the centre before a doctor attended to him.
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Another patient, identified as Halima, expressed doubt that the patients at the centre are truly sick because they haven't physically displayed any signs of illness; although it is well known that even patients that are not exhibiting symptoms can infect others.
"Everybody here is fine. They're just using us for business. Even if we have headache, we use our money to buy drugs. They don't have any drugs here. No doctor, nobody," she complained.
![Another patient, identified as Halima, said their families were kept in the dark by the government about their whereabouts [YouTube/Channels TV]](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg'%20width%3D'790'%20height%3D'701'%20data-ring-placeholder%3D'1'%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Another patient, identified as Halima, said their families were kept in the dark by the government about their whereabouts [YouTube/Channels TV]")
Another patient, identified as Halima, said their families were kept in the dark by the government about their whereabouts [YouTube/Channels TV]
Pulse Nigeria
The patients' protest attracted the attention of locals in the community who crowded around them, raising fears of further community spread of the highly infectious disease.
The state's Commissioner for Information and Culture, Alhassan Ibrahim Kwami, said medical care for the patients has been limited because they're asymptomatic.
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He said the protest happened only because they didn't properly understand the nature of their infection.
"They are asymptomatic and there is no way anybody can be giving drug without showing any symptoms," he said.
He appealed to the patients to be calm while the state government addresses their concerns.
As of May 4, Gombe has recorded a total of 96 coronavirus cases, with all of them currently under medical care.
Nigeria has recorded 2,802 coronavirus cases in 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as of May 4.
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417 people have recovered and been discharged after medical treatment, but 93 people have died.
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