By Lawal A. Dogara, Kaduna
Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, Kaduna state chapter, on Monday berated Kaduna state government over what it referred to as non- challant attitude towards the welfare of its members in the state.
The network also said that failure of the state government to rise and respond to this call within reasonable time, would increase the number of affected persons at geometric rate which may not be good for the economy and socio-political status of the state.
Lamenting the ordeal of his members to media men in Kaduna, the state Coordinator of the Network, Mr. Benjamin David Angboson, said Kaduna state was having prevalence of 9.2% from initial 4.2%, indicating that over 600,000people are living with HIV/AIDS in Kaduna state according to NACA 2012 reports.
According to him, People living with the virus are now spending between 8,000 to 8,500 to access the drugs on their own which he said was quite a burden.
“Imagine someone who is not working and has been struggling on how to get what to eat and now has to combine the money for the Retro Viral Drugs. That shows such a fellow will go into devious business include prostitution and the virus will continue to increase at geometric rate.
“We are also looking at the area of skill acquisition programme to equip people. We learn that the state Governor has been training people under SURE-P and applied, and since then, four months now, our own has not been approved.
“So the question we want the state government to respond to is whether people living with the virus are dead and they cannot do anything. So I think Kaduna state is not really closing the gap but rather widening it.”
Meanwhile, state Coordinator of Youth Network on HIV/AIDS, Population and Development in Nigeria, Murna Tanko, urged youth to be solution to the problem of HIV by a way of abstaining from sex, faithful to a partner and avoiding sharing of sharp objects.
However, wife of the state Governor, Hajiya Fatima Ramalan Yero, said his husband’s administration was taking the issue of HIV/AIDS seriously by ensuring hat no new case and affected people been taking care of.
