Suspend eating of bush meat Dr Nang-Beifubah

Dr Alexis M. Nang-Beifubah, Ashanti Regional Director of Health Services, says the eating of bush meat should be suspended as health experts struggle to contain the outbreak of the deadly hemorrhagic Ebola fever in the West Africa sub-region.

He said the threat of the spread of the viral infection still loomed large and it was important Ghanaians continued to take precautionary measures to prevent catching the disease. Figures by the World Health Organization (WHO) put the total number of reported cases in the sub-region at 982, with 613 deaths.

Dr Nang- Beifubah, at a media briefing in Kumasi on Wednesday, urged people in the region to be on the alert because of the geographical location of the place and the love for bush meat - a traditional delicacy for some of them.

He appealed to hunters to do everything to resist the temptation of selling carcasses of animals found dead in the bush, which might be contaminated, to meat consumers. He encouraged the people to take responsibility for their health and avoid doing things that could endanger their lives.

Dr Nang-Beifubah also underlined the need to keep the environment clean to protect the region from any cholera epidemic. He called for closer collaboration between the media and the health authorities for sustained health education and disease prevention.