From Clement Adeyi, Osogbo
Osun State government has established three quarantine centres to battle Monkey Pox which has broken out in some parts of the country. It also allayed fears on the outbreak of the epidemic in the state. It assured the people that proactive measured had been put in place by the state Ministry of Health to prevent the spread of the virus in the state. The Commissioner for Health, Dr Rafiu Isamotu, who said this in Osogbo, disclosed that the three quarantine centres which locations he failed to mention for sensitive reasons, were ready for service. He added that emergency phone numbers had been released to the public to report any case of the virus in the state. He added that government had put in place primary health care centres in the state and trained some staff who had been mandated to refer any victim of the virus to the three quarantine centres. Isamotu who noted that no specific treatment had been discovered, urged members of the public to always keep their environments clean. He recalled the proactive measures taken by the state during the outbreak of Ebola to ensure prevention and assured that government would take more proactive measures in preventing the monkey pox. He added that government had begun awareness campaigns in both rural and urban areas in the state to sensitise the people of the state on the dangers of the epidemic as a part of efforts on prevention. Commissioner for Information, Mr Lani Baderinwa, however, assured of medical doctors’ readiness to attend to every medical challenge, including the monkey pox, despite their incessant industrial action over non-payment of salaries and allowances.