The Enugu State Government has called the account of the unexpected death of ESUT students in Agbani due to institutional incompetence a hoax.
Dr. Peter Mbah, the state governor, said that a comprehensive inquiry was underway and that his government was dedicated to a secure and improved learning environment at the university.
In a visit to ESUT, the governor, represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, said the government was concerned about student welfare, so they went beyond the report of the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Emmanuel Obi, who was ordered to do a sting investigation of the institution and its medical facility, to visit the institution for a firsthand assessment.
“The governor is concerned and has asked us to come here for a preliminary fact-finding mission about what we have read on social media and a few of their concerns about medical facilities.
ESUT
“He has asked us to investigate the facilities and a few social media comments made by the National Association of Nigerian Students. Thus, the government has chosen to visit to ensure that we are accessible to student and citizen information.
“The governor is determined to make this university a world-class university and to protect life and health.
Thus, we shall meticulously identify deficiencies and engage with the VC, Commissioner for Health, and Commissioner for Education to make suggestions to fix them.
We have investigated the facilities and found and heard that the social media post may have been intended to mislead the public. One thing is certain: the state government is dedicated to student safety and a good learning environment.
Let me further emphasize that the Enugu State government values every life. We want parents who send their children to study here to welcome them healthy. The governor is committed to delivering strong health facilities as indicated in his platform, the SSG added.
Prof. Emmanuel Obi, the Commissioner for Health, said the rumor of students’ deaths on campus was unconfirmed and spread by persons with no health experience.
Prof. Obi added that his Ministry of Health infodemic team launched a sting investigation after phony student death news leaked.
State epidemiology unit, a public health agency, investigates similar stories. All municipal governments in the state have substantial disease surveillance. The illness surveillance and notification officer in Nkanu West Local Government, which includes Agbani, was sent when the information arrived. The officer reported to the Ministry, which conducted its own preliminary inquiry. For now, we still have independent unconnected fatalities involving ESUT students, the commissioner said.
He urged people to avoid bogus news and not claim expertise in areas they do not know.
In his account, ESUT Vice Chancellor Prof. Aloysius Okolie connected false news to the July 17, 2023 election of the ESUT chapter of NANS, claiming some students who lost protested and used fake news and blackmail against the university.
The Vice Chancellor acknowledged the deaths of students and non-students due to accidents, terminal diseases, and other reasons beyond the institution.
“We provide medical equipment and have evidence of expenditure there. Critical medications and manpower have also been purchased. A committee oversees that. We also switched them to primary care and HMO in ESUT. The pupils utilize two working ambulances from that.
“We kept asking if we could do anything to improve the students’ situation and welfare. Last year, we formed a committee including student leadership, Dean Students Affairs, and a few medical officials to report to management on the school’s daily operations.
“We had to improve on what we met on ground by promising to bring in two more doctors, two more nurses, a pharmacist, and a medical laboratory technologist. We need money to compensate them because life is more important and we cherish it.
I have to track the fatalities. Two fatalities occurred off campus at GRA, ESUT College of Medicine, when a woman and her boyfriend were in a room and one died and the other survived. The provost stated the report will be on my table after autopsy.
“The one the Registrar also told me died in Abia State after three months away. We reached out to the family, sent a condolence letter, and authorized a ₦100,000 payment.
A former National Youth Service Corps member from the South West departed due to illness and died three months later. Our condolence message and money were sent.
The other was an Enugu accident. The student perished in an accident on the way back from Enugu church. We read on social media that another woman with terminal anemia died.
Prof Okolie said, “So, we have to be careful about the things we read on social media.”
Dr. Njideka Kenneth-Njoku, the medical centre’s Director of Medical Services, was surprised by the news, saying no one had died in the school since she took office months ago due to the school’s proactive management.
She exhibited several patient records, largely released students, and challenged anyone with opposing information to provide it.
The Students Union Government (SUG), led by its President, Comrade Donatus Okoye, who inspected the medical facilities, debunked social media rumors as untrue, nasty, and a premeditated attempt by certain factional NANS leadership to destroy the institution’s reputation.
Comrade Donatus thanked the governor for his impromptu visit to the institution and pledged to help the administration create a better learning environment.
