Kaffu Bullom and Other Chiefdoms Require Special Attention for Eradicating Ebola Out of Port Loko District By Hassan Bruz Northern Bureau Chief The Provision of all sorts of support to the People of Kaffu Bullom is one of the resolutions reached at the end of the extra ordinary meeting of the Port Loko District Task force on Ebola which was recently held at the Lungi Airport Hotel. The actual purpose was to review the successes, failures, and the insignificances of Operation Surge. This was developed with a view to either scale down or eradicates the spread of the virus. The session was held in Lungi because most of the Stakeholders including Paramount Chiefs of the District were there to receive the Head of State of Mauritania and Chairman of the African Union who was on a one day visit to Sierra Leone. The meeting was chaired by the Chairman of the Port Loko Operation Surge Committee- Hon. Alhajie Alpha Kanu who is also the Minister of Information and Communications. It therefore attracted a cross section of the Senior Cadre of the Management of the Sierra Leone Airport Authority and saw the accounts of both the Assistant Inspector General of Police in Charge of the North/Western Region- F U K Daboh who reported on the security situation and the District Medical Officer- Dr. Adikali Alpha Kamara. He made a thorough analysis of the Ebola situation in the District, dishing out results as recorded by each of the 11 chiefdoms in the Port Loko District. The majority of those in attendance were of the perception that the results were not as bad as often presented at National Levels. Many were in fact gratified in realising that most of the Chiefdoms were performing remarkably well. As outlined by the Chairman of Operation Surge – Hon Alhajie Alpha Kanu, the District was boasting for being able to register a single digit and that most Chiefdom scored between 3 and zero cases during the period under review. He was however able to accept that the District was not doing quite well and there was room for improvement. He singled out Lokomasama, Maforki, Marampa, Koya and Kaffu Bullom in particular as the Ebola problematic Chiefdoms that require special attention. He therefore demanded some explanations from the respective Paramount Chiefs why the situation was not under the desired control. Alhajie Kompa Bomboli is the Paramount Chief of Koya and Chairman of the Council of Paramount Chiefs in Port Loko District. He attributed the cause of this ugly development to the uncontrollable influx of people from Freetown and Koya Rural. He went on to explain some of the stringent measures he has now put in place including the House to House Search and the levy of fines or suspension of any Local Authority who fall foul of the Ebola Bye Laws. He was supported by the Paramount Chief of Masimera who disclosed that they have even added public flogging for those who could not afford to pay the fines. As for the Paramount Chief of Kaffu Bullom, the complexities were caused by the then Medical Superintendent at the Lungi Government Hospital Dr Kakay who made them to misinterpret the results of two Ebola Suspects. The Paramount Chief said the result of the person that was pronounced negative died shortly afterwards and his relatives were okayed by the Medical Doctor to conduct community burial. The Paramount Chief said there was also the issue of Manica which filtered into Mayaya where a lot of lives were subsequently lost as people continued to flout the rules and regulations on the restriction of movement as well as the washing of dead bodies. Some of the other observations that were also surfaced for the high figures coming from the District had to do with what was referred to as improper mapping of Chiefdoms. Koya was cited as an example wherein you have Koya Rural and Koya Chiefdom. According to the outgoing Senior District Officer –Mohamed Sheick Kargbo who doubled as Ebola Taskforce Chairman, the figures from places like Madaka and Songo were often submitted under Koya Chiefdom in the Port Loko District, instead of placing them under Koya. Other contributors said it was as a result of weak or limited Human Resources, untimely supply of Food to Quarantined Homes, and the unavailability of a road worthy vehicle for the Police in Kaffu Bullom. Apart from the issue of Sanda Magbonlonton whose inhabitants were encouraged to make sure that the ongoing Ebola zero record is maintained, the Assistant Inspector General of Police cautioned against the idea of public flogging which he noted, could have some criminal implications. In his remarks, the General Manager of the Sierra Leone Airport Authority- John Sesay suggested for a standard pattern of quarantining Places, without reference to the appropriate Medical Authorities, instead of a situation where Locals can simply declared a place quarantined and continue to expect food supplies . In the final analysis, it was resolved that a Rapid Respond Force be established and for the entire Kaffu Bullom Chiefdom to be quarantined for another 3 Days. During this period, all forms of support should be intensified particularly in the areas of Surveillance and Contact Tracing for the achievement of the desired results. Similar support was also recommended for all the Chiefdoms that were yet registering some cases such as Koya, Marampa, Maforki and Lokomasama together with the neighbouring villages. The District Medical Officer was required to station a Swab squad in Koya and Kaffu Bullom Chiefdoms. He was further asked to ensure the provision of an Ambulance at the Airport. Speaking on the issue of logistics, the Chairman of the Surge Committee – Hon. Alpha Kanu whose Alpha Kan’s Foundation had earlier donated over one thousand bags of rice to the various Chiefdoms in the District , prevailed on the Management of the Sierra Leone Airport Authority to influence the other Agencies operating at the Airport to provide a 100 bags to the Chiefdom while the Paramount Chief of Marampa –P C Koblo Queen pledged 200 bags on behalf of Frank Tunis’ Mining Company which is operating in his Chiefdom. Meanwhile the District Coordinator for the Emergency Response Centre in Port Loko- Hon. Raymond Kabia used the occasion to commended all those who have contributed in diverse ways to fight against the virus in the District. He said even a single case of Ebola in the Country is still a major cause of concern and therefore urged for more concerted efforts. Underneath are Pictures of some of the key contributors in the deliberations in Lungi, where it agreed that the Chiefdom be quarantined for another 3 Days starting this Friday....
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 11:57:56 +0000
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