The Minister of Public and Political Affairs Kemoh Sesay returned to Freetown yesterday after leading 10 political parties over the weekend, to Ebola areas in Kailahun, Kenema and Bo.
The Minister in an interview told Awoko that his Ministry is concerned about the public good and that is why anything that affects them, his ministry is bound to take action.
He also explained that they have been playing a mediating role in different disputes involving the public and have resolved them in an informal manner.
On the Ebola virus trip, the Deputy Minister in the Ministry Karamo Kabbah disclosed that the trip was very successful. “We spoke to people who had been pessimistic about the pandemic and explained to them the seriousness of the situation and that it has nothing to do with reducing their population in Kailahun for the Census as they had been thinking of how this would affect them during elections or that Ebola had anything to do with witchcraft and so they should co-operate with the health workers, instead of driving them away or taking the patients out of the hospital. Ebola is real”, we told them.
He also said that now people are trying to come to terms with the Ebola virus and that an unprecedented 30% of suspected cases had survived so far.
He also said that they visited Kailahun where life was going on as normal, then Kenema and Bo and in all their visits , which included the PPRC and the media, they appealed to the people, the local authorities and the people to join the fight against Ebola by being hygienic.
During the tour, all the radio stations, flyers and T-shirts were used in the sensitization drive by the political parties who had come together as one to ensure that the Ebola pandemic is halted.
It was also revealed that Mohammed Bangura was elected as Chairman for all the political parties .
Meanwhile, the tour has also prompted the Minister of Health Miatta Kargbo to visit Kailahun today.
Also, according to the Chief Medical Officer, so far 279 Ebola cases had been confirmed, 89 deaths and 5 suspected cases mainly from the Kailahun area.
He also said that Kailahun had 204 cases,Kenema-69, Bo-3, Port Loko-2, Kambia-2 and 34 had been discharged since the virus struck.
Wednesday July 08, 2014