Benue State government has close a secondary school, Vaatia College in Makurdi, the state capital following the breakout of an unknown illness.
Not less than nine students, have been confirmed paralyzed following the breakout of the unknown illness and some have been hospitalized at Madonna Hospital, a private clinic in the state.
The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Joseph Ngbea who confirmed the outbreak to newsmen said some of the students have been discharged while few others are still hospitalized.
“The report of the strange disease got to me through my Director of Public Health and we decided to go to the Teaching Hospital where three students were on admission and what we discovered, there was no form paralysis. What we pinpoint was Parasis – weakness of the limbs.
“Many of them were walking with a wobbling gait. We looked at the possible causes because this country is almost certified free of Poliomyelitis.
“So, when we go there, it was confirmed that it was not Poliomyelitis. What we are looking at is ‘Golemba Syndrome’. It is a weakness that starts from the limbs upwards,” he said.
When asked what is the likely cause, the Commissioner said the causes are multi-factorial and can be as a result of bacterial, fungal, or viral infection.
Doctor Ngbea, therefore, curbs the fears of the likely spread of the disease to other schools, considering that students of the college who may have siblings at other schools have been sent back to their families as the school remains shutdown.