Contrary to reports, the Federal Capital Territory Administration has stated that, the three students in Kubwa, Abuja who died after eating biscuits were not killed by the biscuits but by meningitis.
Punch sources, state that the FCTA stated that the actual cause of death was cerebrospinal meningitis.
This information was revealed by Abubakar Sani, special assistant to the FCT minister on media, who quoted the director of public health, Dr Humphrey Okoronkwo, as stating that the pupils died of meningitis.
In an SMS, Sani wrote:
“The FCT director of public health, Dr Humphrey Okoronkwo, says three pupils in Kubwa school died of suspected cases of cerebrospinal meningitis, not food poisoning.”
The school authorities reportedly quizzed the student who shared the biscuits and her mother after the incident.
A teacher stated: “The girl and her mother have been invited. They met with the school authorities and they were not indicted in any way. The school is carrying out its own investigations. The pupils that were claimed to have died don’t even have their names in our register. We don’t believe the biscuit theory because a lot of people ate the biscuits.”
A worker visiting the hospital lamented: “Why will they bury some children without ascertaining what killed them? It is not proper. The solution may be to have all the children immunised. How can anyone say they ate biscuits and died when there is no medical test to confirm this?”
The FCTA education secretary, Tony Ogunleye, when contacted stated: “Investigation is still ongoing. We will brief you properly when we are done.”
DSP Anjuguri Manzah the spokesman of the command has said no arrest had been made and although the investigation is ongoing, the case would be transferred to the command’s Criminal Investigation Department for a more discreet investigation.