Monkey Pox Scare Rattles Rivers Schools …As Parents Pull Children Out Of Schools …RSG Dispels Rumours Of Virus Vaccination By Military

The Rivers State Government has described as untrue the false alarm raised by unidentified persons that the military was forcefully vaccinating pupils with Monkey Pox virus in schools in the state.
The state Commissioner for Education, Dr Tamunosisi Gogo-Jaja made the clarification after he led the management team of the Ministry of Education  to visit some schools within Ikwerre, Obio/Akpor and Port Harcourt City Local Government Areas, yesterday, to ascertain the veracity of the information, which caused serious panic in the state.
He described the information as a false alarm that was raised by unidentified enemies of the state, adding that nobody can even substantiate the source of the information.
“Parents were surging into the school premises to withdraw their wards due to the false information,” he regretted.
The commissioner averred that he had met with the military authorities in the state, adding that there was no such exercise being carried out by the military in the state.
“There is nothing of such that is happening. I have personally visited the Army, and they said the military has not contemplated carrying out such exercise in the state.
“There are rumours orchestrated by some people outside the state to cause crisis in the education system in our state. Parents should not allow themselves to be misinformed by the agents of rumours”, he added.
Gogo-Jaja posited that the rumour was capable of instilling fear in the minds of the children, which according to him, could cause the children to lose concentration and focus while at school.
He urged parents and people of the state to remain calm as government was on top of the situation.
The state commissioner for education, however, directed principals, headmasters and head mistresses across the state to report any individual or group of persons that may come into their schools for any immunisation exercise to security agents.
The Tide reporter, who was in the commissioner’s team, reports that at some schools visited, parents and guardians were seen scaling the school gates in order to withdraw their wards.
Our correspondent further reports that armed policemen were also stationed in some of the schools to prevent breakdown of law and order.
Also speaking, the Rivers State Commissioner for Health, Prof Princewill Chike said there was no ongoing immunisation in the state or any of such programme in schools.
Chike, who visited schools in Mgbuoba, Rumuokwuta, Oyigbo, Rumuolumeni, Rumuola, among others, yesterday, amid panic and fears as a result of rumoured military immunisation in schools, dismissed the claims as false and misleading.
He said, “I want to tell the general public that those claims are rumours and are spread by mischief makers.”
The health boss explained that there was no collaboration of any medical outreach with the Nigerian Army to conduct immunisation programme, since such responsibility rests solely on the primary healthcare board.
Calling on parents and guardians to disregard the rumoured Army’s effort to immunise children in schools, Chike disclosed that currently, only six local government areas of the state have immunisation programmes ongoing in primary healthcare centres.
He listed the local governments to include Bonny, Akuku-Toru, Asari-Toru, Ahoada West, Port Harcourt City and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni.
The health commissioner maintained that the immunisation in the listed local government areas was sponsored for children by the World Health Organisation (WHO) only in primary health centres.
Earlier in a statement, the Rivers State Government said it did not authorise the Nigerian Army or indeed any other body or persons to enter into school premises to administer forced medication or vaccination on any child in any school in Rivers State.
Reacting to claims that the Nigerian Army was conducting vaccination on school children in Port Harcourt, yesterday, Commissioner for Information and Communications, Barrister Emma Okah said, “Inoculation is personal and consent of the Rivers State Government and parents must first be sought and obtained before it can be administered on any school child in a school premises. Consequently, all school heads and parents should resist any such attempt.”
Okah disclosed that “The State Government has set up a task force to ensure that no school premises is violated in the state for the purpose of immunising any child.
“We appeal to members of the public to remain calm and return their kids to school as Rivers State Government will continue to ensure their peace and security.
“The State Government has ordered the arrest of anyone attempting to vaccinate any child in any school premises in Rivers State,” the commissioner added.
In a disclaimer notice signed by Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Col Aminu Iliyasu, yesterday, the Headquarters of 6 Division, Nigerian Army dismissed the rumour as handiwork of enemies of the state.
The statement reads in full: “The attention of Headquarters 6 Division, Nigerian Army has been drawn to some rumours making the rounds that some Nigerian Army personnel are going round schools in Rivers State dressed in military camouflage uniforms with the intention of forcefully vaccinating students with an unknown substance.
“The callous and unpatriotic rumours spread by these enemies of the state are, to say the least, despicable, deplorable and highly condemnable by all well meaning Nigerians as they are intended to cause pandemonium among the general public.
“The authorities of 6 Division, Nigerian Army wishes to inform the general public that while the Nigerian Army plans to undertake such gestures like free medical outreaches, sanitation exercises in host communities and distribution of educational materials as part of our community relations activities during the ongoing Operation Crocodile Smile II, these activities are yet to be conducted and will eventually be conducted with the consent of relevant authorities of designated communities and at venues and dates that will be duly communicated to the general public through future press releases and relevant posters.
“For the purpose of emphasis, the Nigerian Army does not and will never carry out its medical outreaches or vaccination exercises for that matter in Schools. We can therefore categorically inform the public that the ongoing rumours about Nigerian Army personnel going round schools in military camouflage to forcefully immunize school children are not true and should therefore be discountenanced with.
“Additionally, members of the public are please requested to call 09072509436-8 to report any case of any impostor(s) that may be seen actually trying to commit such atrocities,” Iliyasu added.
Similarly, the Rivers State Director, National Orientation Agency, Mr. Oliver Wolugbom has called on teachers, parents and pupils in the state to be calm and disregard the rumours making the rounds that the Army was injecting poisonous substances into school children.
The NOA boss made the call following series of calls from local government areas seeking clarifications on the rumour.
According to the NOA boss, the agency was disturbed by rumours of children and parents running aimlessly to avoid the rumoured immunization, warning that this could endanger the lives of the children.
He enjoined teachers to educate parents and their wards on the true situation on the issue, and appealed to the head teachers and principals to take control of their schools and allow the school session to go on uninterrupted.
“The National Orientation Agency calls on all the citizens of the state to ensure that our children do not get kidnapped, missing or injured this period because of this wicked rumour,” Wolugbom cautioned.
Speaking further, Wolugbom advised that teachers, religious leaders, traditional rulers and chiefs and community development committee executives should report to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health, if they observe anyone carrying any unauthorised immunization in the schools.
The Tide reports that there was panic and pandemonium in some parts of Rivers State, yesterday, as speculations that soldiers were entering schools with the aim of forcing school children to receive vaccination allegedly from the Nigerian Army.
Several callers to some Port Harcourt-based radio stations had triggered anxiety among parents, who trooped to various schools within the state capital to take their children away.
As of 9.45am, parents were seen at the gates of some of the private and government-owned nursery, primary and secondary schools, asking the school officials to release their children for them.
On the street, parents were seen with their children hurriedly stopping taxies and buses to convey them to their various homes.
As of the time of filing this report (12.49pm), almost all the schools in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital were without pupils and students due to the panic.
Parents whose children attend schools around Nkpolu, Rumuagholu, Rumueme, Nkpor, Rumuolumeni, Rumuosi, Rumuola, Rumuekini and Rumuokoro, Rumuomasi, Rumuokwurushi, Elelenwo, Woji, Elekahia, Ogbunabali, D/Line, Diobu, AND Port Harcourt Township in Obio/Akpor and Port Harcourt City local government areas were seen rushing to schools following rumours that soldiers were coming to schools to vaccinate pupils against monkey pox.
A student of Community Secondary Schools, Rumuekini, (surname withheld) told The Tide that the students only saw a team of young people dressed in National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) uniform who entered their school for the exercise.
The student noted that students fled the classrooms when the team mentioned that they were on immunization, because they believed that the team was sent by the military to inject monkey pox into their body.
In Etche, Khana, Eleme, Gokana, and across some other local government areas, schools hastily closed academic activities following rumour of forceful vaccination of children by suspected military personnel.
Some proprietors of the schools who spoke under condition of anonymity with The Tide, however, claimed ignorance of the source of the rumour, adding that they decided to close for the day in order to safeguard the lives of their pupils and students.

John Bibor, Kevin Nengia, Mirian Obusele, Peter Edwin & Janefrancess Chibundu