Covid-19 Patients in Manyu Abandoned to Themselves
Covid-19 patients and persons with symptoms of the disease and
who need to be tested, in Mamfe and other parts of Manyu division, will now
have to move to Bamenda, Kumba or Buea to run their tests and get treatment.
This is the only way out for these patients and suspected cases, as the NGO,
Doctors Without Borders, DWB, which used to help out these patients in
partnership with the Mamfe District Hospital, has said it is pulling out of
Mamfe temporarily.
 |
Doctors Without Borders has parked out of Mamfe, evoking
lack ofadequate personnel and equipment
due to covid-19
restrictions on travel
|
DWB
says the temporal suspension of its activities in Mamfe will run until the end
of July, and the “decision would be evaluated in the light of new
developments.”
DWB
announced that it is suspending its ambulance service in Mamfe and that it no
longer has its medical staff present at the Mamfe District Hospital. It however
says it will continue to support community health workers, and also cover the
hospital fees for patients they refer until the end of July.
It is
however intriguing that DWB has not also suspended its activities in other
parts of the NW and SW or in Yaounde and Far North. This has led many to
conclude that the ‘difficult decision’ by DWB is not unconnected to the recent
upsurge of gruesome killings in Manyu division and in the environs of Mamfe in
particular.
Recall
that on 10 May 2020, the 35-year old mayor of Mamfe, Ashu Priestley Ojong was
brutally murdered in his car, as he was travelling to his village, Eshobi, for
official assignment. Barely days after Mayor Ashu’s murder, a prince of Bakebe
village was pulled out of his home and slaughtered before being dumped on the
Kumba-Mamfe highway.
As if
that was not enough, five Eshobi youths who attended the funeral of the slain
Mayor, Ashu Priestley, in Mamfe, on Saturday 6 June, were gruesomely butchered
upon their return to Eshobi.
It
should be noted that Doctors Without Borders is the sole medical service
provider for covid-19 cases in Manyu division. Apart from the ambulance service
they operate in Mamfe, DWB had erected a tent where covid-19 patients were
quarantined and treated. The NGO also collected samples from persons, which it
took to specialized laboratories in the country to test for covid-19.
Needless
to note that with the departure of DWB from Mamfe, the health sector in Manyu
has lost an indispensable partner. It is the hope of many that DWB would
revisit its ‘difficult decision’ at the end of July 2020. Let’s wait and see.
Statement by Doctors Without Boundaries
The
current COVID-19 pandemic has imposed significant challenges for all -
populations, states and humanitarian actors, globally as well as in Cameroon.
Because
of COVID-19-related travel restrictions, Doctors Without Borders lacks
specialized and experienced staff and equipment needed to ensure it to maintain
the optimal quality of its medical activities in some places around the
world.
In Cameroon, we have made the
difficult decision to temporarily suspend our activities in Mamfe, in
South-West Cameroon, until the end of July.
This decision is temporary and will be evaluated in the light of new
developments.
As of
today, we have suspended our ambulance service in Mamfe and no longer have
medical staff present at Mamfe regional hospital, but we will continue to
support community health workers, and cover the hospital fees for patients they
refer until the end of July.
Doctor Without Borders' other
medical projects in North-West, South-West, Far North and in Yaoundé are not
disrupted and continue, and we are committed to ensure that vulnerable and
isolated communities continue to have access to free and quality healthcare as
much as possible.
We will
do our utmost to continue having a presence in the Mamfe area and will
re-evaluate the situation over the coming weeks.
Albert Vinas
Doctors without Borders
Head of mission, Cameroon - SW Region
For any questions and Media request, contact Antoinette
Buinda, Field communication officer on 664123564/673528979
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