Govt intervenes as alleged poisoned cow meat unsettles Ilorin residents

Govt intervenes as alleged poisoned cow meat unsettles Ilorin residents

The Kwara State Government has commenced investigation into alleged sale of poisoned  cow meat at the Mandate Market, Ilorin, the state capital.

Already, a team of government officials has visited the market and seized all the cow meat suspected to have been poisoned.

The government in a statement on Sunday appealled to the people to remain calm while trying to establish the veracity of the claims.

It was earlier reported that 33 cows had died as a result of poison and the meat sent to the market for sale.

The investigation followed an alarm raised by the Kwara Monitoring Group (KMG) in a statement on Sunday, April 21, 2024, calling for an immediate action to prevent the poisoned meat from being sold to unsuspecting people.

The group said, “Over 33 cows were suspected to be poisoned and died immediately but surprisingly, the dead animals were slaughtered and distributed out to butchers to be sold.

“It happened along Atere Road (that leads to Al Hikma campus) right inside College of Arabic and Islamic Studies, Ilorin.

“It is our prayer that the concerned ministry and agency take appropriate action as nobody knows whose family the poisoned meat could be sold out to in the market.”

In a reaction, the statement government issued a statement titled “Kwara govt team arrives Mandate market, confiscates suspected beef” jointly signed by the Commissioners for Health, Dr Amina El-Imam, and that of agriculture, Toyosi Thomas Adebayo. It said the government team had moved in.

The statement read, “Kwara State Government officials and experts have arrived at the Mandate Market in Ilorin to activate measures to protect the public amid rumours of poisoned cow meat.

“On the team were the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Toyosi Thomas-Adebayo; Commissioner for Health Dr. Amina Ahmed El-Imam; officials from the Ministry of Environment, including the Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Environmental Protection Agency, Mrs Folorunsho Idayat, and officials from the Ministry of Health including the Permanent Secretary, Alhaja Afusat Ibrahim, and the Director of Public Health Dr. Oluwatosin Fakayode, among others.

“The government has immediately confiscated all the suspected meats for laboratory tests and confirmation of claims after initial engagements with the Mandate Market stakeholders.

“Further information will be given as may become necessary.

“The government urges members of the public to be calm while the team establishes the truth of the rumour of poisoned meat.”