Adding to the anguish expressed by the country’s residents on social networking sites was anger: at the foreign pharmaceutical industry that may be responsible for the deaths of the children, at the collapse of the health system and at the way the government has dealt with the issue.
When Fatoumata developed a fever at the end of August, the hospital where her father took her diagnosed malaria, a common disease at the time, and sent her home, prescribing only paracetamol syrup.
Fatoumata died a week later. He was two years old. He was one of 69 children who died in The Gambia in the past three months due to acute kidney failure.
Adding to the anguish expressed by the country’s residents on social networking sites is anger: at the foreign pharmaceutical industry that may be responsible for the deaths of children, at the collapse of the health system and at the way the government has dealt with the issue.
Four cough and cold syrups, all made by Indian company Maiden Pharmaceuticals, are suspected in the deaths.
Investigations by local authorities and the World Health Organization will show whether the lives of Fatoumata and the other children – almost all under the age of 5 – were cut short because they were given these drugs which contained, according to the WHO, “unacceptably high » quantities of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol, substances widely used as antifreezes. Ingestion may cause death.
The WHO sounded the alarm last week and called for these syrups to be withdrawn from circulation. Only in The Gambia are they distributed, but the WHO does not consider it unlikely that they circulate elsewhere, through “unofficial” routes, mainly in Africa, where controls are often insufficient.
The questions remain unanswered: how did these counterfeit products escape the controls and why was Gambia, one of the poorest countries in the world, the only one to import them?
Many parents recounted the drama they experienced, holding their children’s photos in their hands. Fatoumata “wasn’t eating anything anymore and blood was coming out of her mouth and nose,” said her father, Uri Bailo Keita, a 33-year-old who washes cars for a living. In the end, the child suffered so much that “I was praying to God to take her,” she said.
“Justice!”
Uri Bailo Keita is furious with the government.
The Gambian authorities had been warned since at least the end of July. They initially cited as a possible cause of the deaths, in addition to the syrups, the bacteria E.coli, which was spread due to the floods. Gradually, however, syrups emerged as the main “suspect”.
Small children continued to die well into September. Authorities ordered the recall of the syrups on September 23.
“It’s time for the government to do its job and stop the trade of these items because if they do nothing and other syrups are imported the consequences will be terrible,” said Mariama Cuiateh, a 30-year-old mother who lost her son , Moussa, last month.
It was only on Saturday that President Adama Barrow addressed the people. He ordered that steps be taken to stop the importation of adulterated drugs and called for the establishment of a control laboratory. The next day, he suspended the license of the importer of the syrups. At the same time, the police announced that they are starting an investigation.
The president’s speech did not quell the anger.
“Chairman Barrow should have sacked the health secretary. Instead, he praises him. We want justice for the children,” Fatoumata’s father said.
The largest opposition party, the United Democratic Party (UDP) accused the president of “apathy”. “An affected country is wondering what other medicines it has on its market that are adulterated or dangerous,” he said in a statement.
The Gambia’s healthcare system is notoriously inefficient. The mortality rate of children under 5 reaches 49.4 deaths per 1,000 births while in Germany, for example, it is only 3.7. In the UN’s Human Development Index, which includes health, education and standard of living as criteria, The Gambia ranks 174th out of 191 countries.
The UDP and others are calling for those responsible for the deaths to be held accountable. “We are stunned” by the government’s response, said Nancy Jallow of the non-governmental organization Global Bridges. Nowhere else in the world would something like this happen without any official losing his position, while here “everyone goes to work normally the next day,” he added.
Minister Ahmadou Lamin Samateh has ruled out resigning.
“The government will do everything to shed light on the facts,” the president promised.
RES-EMP
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I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
