Rivers State Govt bans consumption of local gin over death of 32 persons

Rivers State Government has announced a ban on the consumption of local gin (popularly called Ogogoro or kai-kai) following the death of about 32 persons in parts of the state.

About 15 persons were said to have died at Woji Town in Port Harcourt metropolis while another 17 were said to have died in Bonny Island. The deaths were attributed to the consumption of dog meat delicacy and local gin containing a high dose of ethanol.

The ban was announced on Thursday by the Department of Disease Control in the state ministry of health which said the ban had become necessary to avoid more people consuming the toxic substance.

The Director of Disease Control in state Ministry of Health, Dr. Roland Obed-Whyte, however expressed concern over the difficulty in getting samples of the particular local gin for thorough clinical analysis because aggrieved youths of Woji had set ablaze the shop of Friday Dickson, aka Etiaba, where the suspected toxic gin was bought and consumed, erasing the remaining samples of the gin.

Dickson, he noted, was also already in the custody of the Police.

Credit: Ernest Chinwo/ThisDay