by crossriverwatch admin
Treated Mosquito nets are meant to be used in homes to protect family members especially children from mosquitoes and not to be used in farms and gardens to protect crops as some women do and hence forth any woman who deploy nets given to her in the garden in Cross River State will be arrested.
The Cross River State Commissioner for Health, Professor Angela Oyo-ta who stated this in Okpoma, Yala Local Government headquarters in a ceremony to mark the Maternal, New Born and Child Health Week stated that some women have formed the habit of deploying mosquito nets given to them to use in their homes to protect themselves and children from mosquito bites which transmit malaria, in their farms to safeguard their crops from insect and rodents.
“The mosquito nets are treated with chemicals which if ingested by humans is harmful to health and when you now use the nets in your gardens and farms the crops are infected with these chemicals and when you eat the food from these crops they endanger your health”.
She said there have been several instances where the women have been cautioned against the use of nets in farms but the practice has persisted and therefore the government will no longer fold its arms and watch the women expose children to mosquito bites because they have found another use for the nets which government is handing over to them at no cost.
Professor Oyo Ita stated that the state has introduced integrated health data units in hospitals and health facilities across the state for the collation of data that will assist the government in planning how to meet the health needs of the people of the state. “Cross River State has declared war against childhood deaths from malaria and other childhood killer diseases and the use of mosquito nets and immunization is to ensure our children and mothers do not die from such diseases”
Mr Efiok Cobham, the Cross River State deputy governor who stood in for Senator Liyel Imoke, the governor of the state said the state is working towards bringing all the units of the primary health care under one umbrella to make room for effective planning and execution of policies in the primary health care system.
He advised parents to ensure they make their children available for the vitamin and folic acid supply by officials of the primary health care units in their areas as the state has made abundant supply of the two items in the hospitals and primary health care centers across the state.
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