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Friday, July 4, 2014

Third case of JE reported in Penang


Penang has reported its third case of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) today, as the state government grapples with the lack of information from the Health Ministry.

State executive councillor on health Dr Afif Bahardin said that the first case, involving an 18-year-old youth who lives in Lorong Seratus Tahun within the George Town area, had actually occurred in May.

According to Afif (left), the youth is still recuperating from his illness but has yet to recover fully.

Afif said the state was not aware of cases of JE in Penang until the story of Muhammad Ammar Muqrish Zulkifli was highlighted by TV9 on Sunday.

Following the report, Afif said the Veterinary Department took blood samples from 20 pig breeders operating within one kilometre from the child’s school.

Fogging activities were then carried out on June 30 at the school and Ammar’s home, Afif said, adding that 191 blood samples were taken directly by the Bukit Tengah veterinary lab and sent to Ipoh Veterinary Research Institute for testing.

Afif said the third case involved a child who lived with his grandfather in Bagan Jermal during the daytime although the area is not near any pig farm.

“We only knew about JE cases in Penang after Ammar’s story was aired on TV9, that is also when everyone knew about it,” said Afif.

“This is also when our state government and Veterinary Department heard about the case. The right questions should be asked of the Health Ministry,” Afif told reporters in Penang today.

“The Health Ministry had been notified about the case, while the state health department is not 100 percent under the purview of the state government, it is under the jurisdiction of the federal government,” Afif explained.

“We don’t have any control over the state Health Ministry officials, nor do we have the notification data under the state government,” stressed the Seberang Jaya assemblyperson.

Afif said the state was in the forefront of the fight against dengue as his department works closely with the local councils.

He laid the blame on the lack of communication between the federal and state government departments, adding that since the disease involved animals, the appropriate department to inform would be the state Veterinary Department.

He urged the Health Ministry to conduct an inquiry into the lack of communication between the departments.

“Diseases are apolitical and the state agencies involved should be informed immediately about any occurrences so that we can act swiftly,” he said.

Meanwhile, Afif said Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng will issue a gazette to quarantine only farms with positive results of blood samples tested.

So far, Sarawak has eight cases, Sabah (four), Selangor (one), Kelantan (one) and Penang (three).

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