On Friday the 25th of November, a broadcast message was circulated to the occupants of Alexander Brown Hall. It came from the office of the Health and Sanitation Minister, through the information minister. The message informed the occupants of the hall that a fumigation exercise was going to be carried out in the cafeteria the following day. It also stated that the cafeteria would be closed on the 26th and 27th of November 2022 and that food vendors would be unavailable for those two days. This was in keeping with the Health and Sanitation Minister’s campaign promises of rat extermination in the hall and improvement of cafeteria hygiene.
The immediate reaction from many Brownites who rely on the food vendors for their meals was annoyance. Many of them complained that adequate notice was not given before the fumigation exercise. Some Brownites even went as far as to suggest that it was an unnecessary exercise. Regardless, on the 26th of November, the cafeteria was cleared out and individuals in fumigation wear showed up to fumigate the cafeteria.
According to the Health and Sanitation minister, Mr Jesufemi Adeyeye, the fumigation exercise was conducted by the UCH Health and Environmental Service, who inspected the cafeteria and recommended that it be fumigated. The food vendors in the cafeteria then liaised with the Health and Sanitation Ministry to contact the Health and Environmental services to conduct the fumigation of the cafeteria.
The fumigation exercise was targeted at rats, wall geckos, cockroaches, spiders and other insects. At the end of the exercise, a certificate was issued certifying the cafeteria free from vermin for at least six months. According to Mr Adeyeye, the exercise might need to be repeated. However, the onus will be on the next tenure as his time as Health and Sanitation minister might have come to an end by then. He also said, “I would like to apologise to Brownites for the short notice and the timing. Really, it was out of my hands because the UCH Health and Environmental Service insisted that we fumigate immediately. I am truly sorry for the inconveniences. We remain committed to keeping the hall sanitary and keeping Brownites healthy.”
