Falana asks Ehanire to publish full report on investigation into ‘strange deaths’ in Kano

Femi Falana, a senior advocate of Nigeria, has asked Osagie Ehanire, minister of health, to publish the full report of the investigation into the recent deaths in Kano.

On April 22, 2020, at the presidential task force on COVID-19 briefing in Abuja, Ehanire announced that a special medical team had been deployed to investigate the deaths in Kano.

TheCable had reported the confusion in Kano over the rise in number of deaths.

In a letter addressed to the minister on Sunday on behalf of the Alliance on Surviving Covid-19 Action Programme and Beyond of which he is interim chairman, Falana said the state seems overwhelmed and asked the federal government to take control of the situation.

“During a press briefing held at Abuja a week ago, you did announce that the Federal Ministry of Health, the Kano State Chief Epidemiologist, Officials of the Kano Public Health Department and those of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) had commenced investigation into the strange deaths and mass burials currently going on in Kano State,” it read.

“However, we are disturbed to note that the burials have since continued without any official information on the cause of the strange deaths.

“The people of Kano State and Nigerians in general are worried over the worsening health crisis as it may spread to other parts of Kano State not yet affected as well as other parts of the country if not urgently addressed. But since the Kano State Government is completely overwhelmed we hereby call on the Federal Government to take over the management of the crisis without any further delay.

“In addition, we are compelled to request for a certified true copy of the report of the joint investigation conducted by the Federal and Kano State Ministries of Health into the strange deaths and mass burials taking place in Kano State.

“The report should include the nature and cause of the deaths, the number of casualties and patients currently undergoing treatment in hospitals as well as an outline of the measures being put in place by the Federal Government to stop the strange deaths involving mass burials.”

He said the request is made pursuant to provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, and Ehanire is required to publish the report “within seven days of the receipt of this letter”.

“Take notice that if you fail to accede to our request we shall not hesitate to invoke the relevant provisions of the law to compel official disclosure of the findings of the joint team constituted to investigate the cause of the strange deaths and mass burials in Kano State,” it added.

As at April 25, 2020, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) had recorded 77 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state.