Cholera Scare in Suru: Lawmaker Maisudan Visits Hospital to Help Sick Families

Imagine going to bed feeling fine, then waking up with bad stomach pain, throwing up, and running to the toilet all day. That's what cholera does. It hits fast and can kill if you lose too much water from your body. In Suru Local Government Area, this sickness is making many people very ill. Hon. Barr. Faruku Abubakar Maisudan, the lawmaker for Mülki Suru in the Kebbi State House of Assembly, went to the General Hospital in Suru to see the patients. He wanted to check on them and find out what they need. This visit shows how leaders can step in during hard times. But in places like Suru, where clean water is hard to find, one visit is not enough to stop the problem.

The visit happened on October 15. Maisudan drove from the state capital, Birnin Kebbi, to Suru town. The General Hospital is the main health center for about 80,000 people in the area. These people live in small villages near the Niger River. The hospital has only 50 beds and a few doctors. When Maisudan arrived, the place was busy. Sick people were on beds with tubes giving them water through their arms. Mothers sat next to their children, looking worried. Maisudan talked to the patients and the doctors. He asked simple questions: "How did you get sick?" "What medicines do you need?" "Is there enough clean water here?" A nurse who works there said, "The lawmaker came to see with his own eyes. He was kind and asked about the children first. They are the ones who get sick the fastest."

Maisudan has been the lawmaker for Suru since 2023. He is a lawyer by training and chairs the Justice Committee in the assembly. He cares about his people. For example, in June, he helped 500 farmers get rice seeds to grow more food after floods ruined their fields. In February, he worked with the governor's wife to give sewing machines to 800 women so they could make clothes and earn money. Now, with cholera, he is helping with health. One sick man named Ibrahim, a 28-year-old farmer, told us about the visit. "I got sick from dirty well water after the rain," he said. "Maisudan sat with me and said he will push for clean water tablets in every home. It made me feel like someone cares."

Cholera is a big problem in Kebbi. It comes from bad water or food with germs. People get very thirsty, weak, and can die in one or two days if not treated. In April, Kebbi and nearby Katsina had 200 cases. Now, in October, Kebbi has 173 suspected cases. Suru has about 30 people sick at the hospital right now. Most are young children under five years old. The rainy season made it worse. Floods in August mixed dirty things into the rivers and wells. People drink from streams where animals go too. The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says Nigeria has over 10,000 cases this year, with 244 deaths. Kebbi's part is small but growing. In Suru, the hospital gives salt drinks and medicines to help, but supplies are low sometimes.

Why is cholera so bad in Suru? The area is poor. About 72% of people have little money. Many live in villages with no good toilets. About 40% use open fields for bathroom needs. This mixes germs into the water. The Niger River looks clean but gets dirty in rains. Bandits make it worse. They close markets, so people stay home and use whatever water they have. Floods broke many water pumps. Only 40% of homes in Kebbi have safe water, says the National Bureau of Statistics. In Suru, it's even less. Women do most of the work getting water. They walk far, carrying heavy buckets. When sick, they lose days of work and money. Children miss school—sickness makes 20% drop out, says a 2024 study.

Maisudan's visit is a good sign. He saw the problems up close: Not enough bags for water in the veins, low salt drinks called ORS, and no zinc pills for kids to get better fast. The hospital runs on old machines. Power cuts often happen, but Maisudan gave generators in July to keep medicines cold. Now, he might ask the assembly for more help, like extra supplies or money for clean water. This is how leaders should work—see the problem, then fix it.

Kebbi's health system needs more help. The state spends only 6% of its budget on health. That's about N12 billion out of N200 billion. The governor gave N2 billion in June for solar lights in 50 clinics. But only 60% of that money has been used because of paperwork problems. Groups like USAID helped in 2023 with water pumps that cut sickness by 30%. But bandits scare workers away. In nearby Sakaba, raids closed clinics for weeks. For IDPs from Dirin Daji, like in our last story, getting help is hard.

The people in Suru feel the pain. Fatima, a mother of three, said her 4-year-old son got cholera last week. "He was so weak, crying for water," she said. "The hospital helped, but we need clean wells at home." Women like her lose money when sick. They sell food or cloth at markets. Cholera means days in bed, no sales. Kids get smaller and weaker. Last year, 24 people died from cholera in Kebbi. This year, the death rate is low at 2.4%, but cases are up 15% each week.

To stop this, leaders must act. Maisudan can push a new law for N5 million extra money for each local health center. The state should fix pumps after floods with N1 billion. The national plan needs more salt drinks and training for helpers. In villages, teach people to wash hands and boil water. This can cut cases by 25%, like in test places.

Maisudan left the hospital with ideas. The lights stayed on for night workers. One visit can't end cholera, but it gives hope. Suru's people need leaders like him to keep coming back. If everyone works together, Kebbi's health can improve. One check-up at a time, from sickness to strength.