Time was when residents of Ikola-Agbenaje, in the Agbado Oke-Odo Local Council Development Area, sat under the shade of trees and admired the asymmetric flight of birds and bats across the skyline of their homes. Then, the deadly Ebola Virus Disease was a distant dream, with many of them not even knowing about its existence. But now, panic is a permanent companion of the residents.
In the light of pockets of Ebola cases being recorded in Lagos, our correspondent learnt that the presence of bats has thrown the remote community into confusion. Fruit bats, chimpanzees and monkeys have been fingered as possible hosts of the virulent virus.
The chain of infection, introduced to Nigeria by the Late Liberian-American, Mr. Patrick Sawyer, who flew into Lagos on July 20, has claimed one life and infected nine others in the country. More than 900 people have also lost their lives to the disease since the latest outbreak in West Africa. The development has set Lagos and, indeed, the whole country on edge.
Worst hit is Samson Taiwo, a muddy street with a bridge linking it with a forest said to be owned by a former President. In interviews with our correspondent, residents express worries that the half-blind animals do not just perch on fruits in their compounds, but also force entry into their bedrooms where their faeces litter window sills.
Residents of the community are apprehensive that despite making several calls to some of the telephone lines dedicated by the state government to the EVD, nothing concrete has been done to what they see as a time bomb.
An inhabitant, who has lived on the street for 12 years, Mr. Jonathan Paul, has a tree he calls ‘umbrella fruit tree’ in his compound. He says he has since stopped eating any of its fruits since the virus became an issue.
“I stopped eating the fruits when I heard that the Ebola virus is in Lagos. Bats are many here and they come around at night. They perch on everything, especially the PHCN poles. I have never met them on the fruit tree in my compound, but they certainly come here. I have not seen them in the house. But I stopped eating the fruit and I told my younger sister to stop eating it because we hear that bats spread the virus.
“I really don’t know what can be done. This area is surrounded by a thick bush. If the government fumigates every house on the street, can they possibly fumigate everywhere in Lagos? These bats will migrate somewhere else,’’ he submits.
However, another landlord on the street, Mr. Olufemi Olanrewaju, has a more intimate encounter with the bats. Olanrewaju, who moved into his duplex last year, describes horrific moments with the bats. While showing our correspondent faeces and other droppings of the creatures in his house, he claims to have killed not less than 10 bats in his building since moving into the area.
“In fact, my ceiling fan killed one of them one day. They are shiny black creatures and small in size. They can wriggle through small openings and you may just open your bedroom and see them flying around the space. There is no month that we will not kill a bat in the house. My daughter cannot even sleep in our room again.
“I moved in here last year before the Ebola virus broke out in Lagos and, in fact, the first time we saw a bat in the house we could not sleep. I had to call my pastor to pray. Now that the Ebola virus is in Lagos, we are much more concerned about their presence,’’ he says.
The landlord adds that the only response he has got so far from government has been a piece of advice.
His words, “I called one of the dedicated lines to the disease. It was picked by one Mr. Ladipo talking from Victoria Island. He asked for my name and age and promised they would come and fumigate the place. He also said we are fine as long as we don’t eat the bats. I didn’t even know that people eat bats.’’
Contrary to the view of the agent of the Lagos State Government, the EVD is a zoonotic disease – transferable from animals to humans. Experts argue that it can be passed to humans if they eat fruits touched by infected fruit bats or their droppings. This is the reason why experts have relentlessly advocated for thorough washing of any fruit with running water before consumption.
However, findings by our correspondent show that it may be impossible for fruit bats to fly from Ebola-endemic countries to Nigeria. In an interview with this reporter, a Professor of Zoology, University of Lagos, Mrs. Bunmi Otubanjo, says the bats present in Ikola-Agbenaje community are most likely insectivorous bats. The expert adds that unless the fruit bats can manage to get on a plane, they are unlikely to be imported into Nigeria.
He explains, “The bats in that community are insectivorous bats. They are small or slightly big. Fruit bats on the other hand are big and always cluster together. They are big because they feed on fruits and get a lot of nutrients. They also move in a cluster and feed together. Insectivorous bats are lonely. They fly alone and feed on insects. Once the people in the community are not feeding on them or not touching them, then there is no danger.
“The geographical range for every animal is limited. They cannot fly into Nigeria unless they manage to get on a plane. So, once the people are not feeding on the bats and they wash their cutlery which might have been exposed to faecal droppings, they are safe,’’ she says.
Agreeing with Otubanjo, a former Vice Chancellor, University of Uyo, Calabar, Professor Eyo Okon, says the bats in the community are most likely insect-eating ones. Okon, a professor of Zoology, however, gives a new dimension when he tells our correspondent that fruit bats are available in Nigeria. According to him, fruit bats, numbering over a million, exist as a colony at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
“They have been around since the inception of the university. But there is no concrete evidence yet linking fruit bats with Ebola virus. There was a time when bats were also linked to rabies but the insinuation was dropped when there was no evidence to back it up. The community in Lagos needs not panic. What the academic community needs to do is engage in more research,’’ he says.
Still disagreeing with Otubanjo, Okon adds that it is possible for bats to fly from one country to another. He says some move daily while others do so seasonally. According to him, research is ongoing to see how far the creatures can travel.
Our correspondent also found that residents have varied dispositions to the presence of the bats. While some express fear and indignation, others are indifferent.
One of them is a landlord, Mr. Teslim Afunlehin, who moved into the area some five years ago. Afunlehin posits that he has never lost sleep over the ‘visitors’. He says he has seen the bats hanging on the electric wire many times.
However, the Chairman, Landlords and Residents Association, Mr. Ademola Hamzat. Hamzat, who claims to be a spiritual consultant, urges the federal and state governments to seek a spiritual solution to the EVD.
According to him, many politicians go to spiritualists to seek blessings for election, but they ignore the latter when it has to do with health challenges.
“I see this Ebola virus as the wrath of God. We were told to stop consuming red meat and switch to bush meat because it has low fat content. Yet, this has happened now. Anything virus is God’s wrath and we should not see anything the West says as the final. Let us introduce spirituality into government. If herbalists in this country can put heads together, we can repel Ebola,’’ he says.
Meanwhile, the community has also called on the state government to stop the rape on its environment by sand lifters whom they say constitute a nuisance to their well being. While in the community at the weekend, it was noted that Samson Taiwo is the only street with a link to the forest behind the community.
For many years, our correspondent learnt, the muddy street has been the only pathway for tippers who swoop to the forest to scoop red sand for sale. On Saturday, our correspondent counted about 20 tippers as early as 9.00am. Residents say business starts for the tipper drivers as early as six am and does not end until late in the night. The presence of the tippers, according to the people in the community, has caused untold psychological and physical damage.
The rainy season has also added to the predicament of the inhabitants. Our correspondent observed that a number of the tippers, laden with red earth, got stuck in the sticky mud on the way back from the forest, creating a long line waiting for the affected truck to move. Just as the driver maneuvered unsuccessfully to free the trapped vehicle, the truck veered drunkenly to a side of the drainage, damaging its edges. At this point, a man jumped down from the truck, shovelling under the tires to make way for the truck. Instantly, his action created a deep gulley on the road, changing its architecture. Several gullies of this pockmarked the street.
Residents say that has been a constant spectacle they have had to put up with in the last decade. Another landlord, Mr. Ibrahim Somuyiwa, alleges that both the state and local government collect levies from the sand lifters.
“I do not send my children on any errand anymore. It is dangerous. Look at the situation now, the tippers have blocked the street and you cannot drive out of your house now no matter how urgent the appointment you have. That tipper that is stuck can be there for the next 10 hours.
“It is not better even during dry season; you see dust everywhere. We have staged many protests and even ended up at the police station with some of the drivers,’’ he says.
Somuyiwa adds that the community has been abandoned by the government.
“We rarely have light in spite of the fact that the community bought poles on its own. There is no single tarred road in the entire Agbenaje community. The nearest health centre is at Abule-Egba,’’ he laments.
Efforts to speak with the Chairman, Agbado/Oke-Odo Local Development Council, Hon. Kenny Okunmuyide, were futile as his number did not go through as at 8 pm press time on Monday. The tipper drivers too were hesitant in making any comments which, they say, could jeopardise their business.
Also, efforts to speak with the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris, and his counterpart in the Ministry of the Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, yielded no fruits. While calls to Bello’s number did not go through, Idris did not respond to calls and messages to his line.
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