Lagos Govt wades in as deadly reptiles overrun Badagry PHC
Lagos State Government has set machinery in place to ensure reconstruction of a Pota Primary Health Centre, PHC, in Badagry Local Government Area of the State, in complete disrepair.
According to a news medium, Badagry Today, reported an alarming state of the health facility after receiving photographs, sent in by concerned residents, showing snakes reportedly killed within the hospital premises.
What once served as the primary point of health care for the local community has now become a decaying, snake-infested ruin — unfit even for shelter, let alone for delivering medical services, the report stated.
“Multiple nurses at the facility, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, revealed that more than 20 snakes have been killed inside the building in recent months,” the report stated.
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The reptiles, they said, have been spotted in nearly every part of the centre, from the labour room and doctor’s office to the reception area, laboratory, and toilets.
The facility, which caters for over 15 towns and 40 communities, now operates without a steady power supply. At night, staff are left to work by candlelight and a single solar-power bulb.
A generator once donated by a nearby mosque has since fallen into disuse, abandoned due to Government’s failure to provide fuel.
Speaking with journalists, according to the report, the Permanent Secretary, Health District 5, Dr Oladapo Asiyanbi acknowledged the state of the disrepair but hinted that the outgoing chairman of the council has waded in.
“You know this is a facility that Local Government is in charge of, but when I got the information, I spoke with the chairman and as I am talking to you, engineers have already gone there. They are to assess the situation.
“Yes, the PHC is deplorable but the grass has been cut and the whole place is already fumigated. But you know, the current chairman will be leaving in a couple of days.
“I will also speak with the incoming chairman. Don’t forget that construction work also takes time but I assure you, the facility will be reconstructed,” Dr Asiyanbi stated.
