The Kano State House of Assembly has called on Governor Abba Yusuf to urgently intervene in a diphtheria outbreak that has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 50 children in Rano Local Government Area.
The call followed a motion of urgent public importance moved by the member representing Rano Constituency, Ibrahim Muhammad, during Monday’s plenary presided over by Speaker Ismail Falgore.
Muhammad said the outbreak was particularly severe in the Ridin and Sabuwar Kaura communities, where more than 50 children were said to have died.
He noted that emergency measures had already been taken, including the purchase of medication and deployment of health workers, but stressed that additional intervention was needed to contain the spread of the disease.
Muhammad also expressed concern that the outbreak had resurfaced after a similar incident claimed several lives in the area last year.
Supporting the motion, the member representing Kiru Constituency, Usman Abubakar Tasiu, said the outbreak had spread to communities in Kiru Local Government Area, including Kwarin Dangora, Dangora town and Yelwa.
He disclosed that an APC youth leader in Kiru reportedly lost two children to the disease within a single day.
Tasiu called for the establishment of an emergency committee to tackle the outbreak across affected local government areas, including Rano, Tudun Wada, Kibiya, Bunkure, Bebeji and Kiru.
Another lawmaker, Saleh Ahmad, who represents Dawakin Tofa Constituency, urged the state government to intensify vaccination and other preventive measures, warning that diphtheria could spread rapidly to neighbouring communities.
The Majority Leader, Lawan Husseini, also called on the government to invoke the state’s Health Protection Law to contain the outbreak, noting that the legislation empowers authorities to provide emergency relief, free healthcare and other measures in areas affected by infectious diseases.
The House subsequently adopted the motion and directed its Committee on Health to engage the Ministry of Health on the implementation of the law and the provision of emergency support to the affected communities.
