31st August, 2022
By Jethro Ibileke
Edo State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Obehi Akoria, has disclosed that the State Government will soon conduct a mass burial for the corpses found at the illegal mortuary located off Ekehuan Road in Benin City.
Akoria in a statement Wednesday evening, added that the mass burial will also include corpses at the former mortuary of the defunct Asuen Hospital, First East Circular Road, in Benin City.
She called on members of the public who have corpses at these locations to provide the required evidence to claim such corpse(s) for burial.
She said: “The general public is hereby notified that the corpses which were found at an illegal mortuary located off Ekehuan Road in Benin City have been scheduled for mass burial. Similarly, corpses at the former mortuary at the defunct Asuen Hospital, First East Circular Road, Benin City, have been scheduled for mass burial.
“Members of the public who may have corpses at these locations are hereby invited to provide the required evidence to claim such corpse(s) for burial.”
The Commissioner added, “The Government of Edo State is hereby giving a moratorium of 21 days beginning from the date of publication of this announcement for the corpses to be duly claimed for burial.
“For further clarification, please contact the Director of Regulation and Monitoring at the Ministry of Health – 3rd Floor, Block D, New Secretariat Building, Sapele Road, Benin City.”
It would be recalled that the the state government had earlier directed all private hospital owners who run mortuaries, owners and operators of standalone mortuaries, and owners and operators of embalmment homes in the state to present their registration documents to the State Ministry of Health before close of business on Friday, 30 September, 2022.
The Commissioner further stayed that “Owners/operators of mortuaries or embalmment homes who are not duly registered with the Ministry of Health are advised to obtain the requirements for registration from the Ministry of Health before close of business on Friday September 9, 2022.
“Owners/operators of mortuaries and embalmment homes are further informed that every corpse must be duly certified as dead by a competent medical officer before being received into a private mortuary. Any corpse that has not been so certified should be taken to a government-owned mortuary.”