Bad market! Ondo govt bans ‘ogogoro’

As fallout of the strange disease that befell Irele community in Ondo State recently, the state government has banned the production and consumption of locally-made gin, commonly called ‘ogogoro’ in the state.

The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Dayo Akinyanju, who made the announcement at a news briefing in Akure on Saturday, said the ban became necessary to enable government identify the source of contamination or find out how the methanol got into the drinks.

The commissioner appeal to the general public to desist from drinking the gin adding, that “We will also embark on searches because this batch of methanol-containing gin must have gone round because four cases: two alive and two dead have been found in Odigbo Local Government Area,” he said.

According to him, “Our clinical analysis reveals the fact that there were no known viruses, while toxicology reports have confirmed our prime suspicion of methanol poisoning.

“We have reviewed our strategies and embarked on sensitisation to let people know that locally-made gin is prohibited.

Akinyanju said stakeholders such as religious leaders, transporters, youths, market women, and the relevant association would be informed of the development”.

According to the commissioner, the unknown disease has so far claimed 23 lives with ten other people receiving treatment.

“Two of them have regained their sights and are back home”, he said.

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