Makarfi PDP faction asks Zamfara Governor to resign for attributing meningitis outbreak to God



The Ahmed Makarfi faction of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party has asked the governor of Zamfara State to resign over his comments, Tuesday, attributing the outbreak of Cerebro Spinal Meningitis in the country to God.

The faction also said the “apathetic attitude of both the Zamfara State and Federal Government to curtail the scourge is disheartening and preposterous”.

Zamfara is the worst hit state since the outbreak of the disease with over 200 deaths. Mr. Yari on Tuesday said God is using the disease to punish Nigerians for turning their backs on him.

He validated his position by saying because God wants to use it to punish the people, he sent in Type C, which has no vaccination presently, rather than Type A for which vaccines are readily available.

In a statement by its spokesperson, Dayo Adeyeye, on Wednesday, the Makarfi PDP faction said “the primary responsibility of any government is to protect the lives and property of its citizens and the APC-led government has remained insensitive, careless and adamant to the plight of Nigerians in all ramifications”.

“This government wasted so much funds on the State House Clinic with no tangible result but neglected other health centres and clinics across the country that have capacities to manage the health challenges of other Nigerians.

“As of Tuesday, April 4, 2017, about 336 Nigerians have lost their lives due to the outbreak of Type C Cerebrospinal Meningitis and the Federal Ministry of Health has not taken any concrete step to contend with the spread.

“It is on record that the PDP Government in sixteen years did not allow such mindless display of insensitivity as seen by this APC Administration.

“More worrisome is the statement credited to the Governor of Zamfara State, Alh. Abdullaziz Yari, in which he attributed the outbreak of Meningitis to God’s making. This is shameful and very unfortunate as the APC has run out of reasons to blame previous PDP administration but it is now blaming God for its failures,” the statement said.

It also said Governor Yari should not blame God for his failures but that of his party, the APC, to avoid incurring God’s anger on their “crass ineptitude in governance”.

“However, we wish to advise him to resign immediately for making such statement as a state Governor and the Chairman of Governors Forum who is supposed to bring hope to the people and not despair.

“Finally, we call on the Federal Government of Nigeria to stop playing politics with this outbreak and do everything within its power to end the menace.
“As a party, our heart goes to the families of all those that lost their lives to the scourge within this period.

“We urge all Nigerians to drink more water, sleep in a ventilated environment and report symptoms to the nearest health centre within their areas for quick medical attention,” the statement said.

Source: PremiumTimes

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