The Oyo State Government has issued a seven-day notice to relatives and next of kin of unclaimed corpses deposited in public hospital mortuaries across the state to come forward for identification and possible claim.
The government warned that any corpse not claimed within the notice period would be given a mass burial.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, disclosed this in a public notice, expressing concern over the increasing number of unclaimed bodies currently deposited in mortuaries within public health facilities across the state.
According to her, the corpses were brought to the hospitals by agencies including the Nigeria Police Force, the Federal Road Safety Corps, the Nigerian Correctional Service and other relevant authorities.
Ajetunmobi said many of the bodies had remained unclaimed for a long period, causing severe congestion in the affected mortuaries, some of which had already reached their storage capacities.
She explained that the congestion had become a major concern to the state government because of the need to maintain proper public health standards and ensure the effective operation of public healthcare facilities.
The commissioner therefore urged members of the public, particularly persons with missing relatives, to visit public hospital mortuaries across the state for identification and possible claim of the bodies.
She said the seven-day notice was intended to give relatives, next of kin and other concerned persons a final opportunity to identify and retrieve the remains of their loved ones before the burial exercise is carried out.
Ajetunmobi further disclosed that arrangements were already being finalised for the mass burial of all unclaimed corpses in the affected facilities.
She said the mass burial would take place seven days from the date of the public notice if the bodies remained unclaimed.
The commissioner reiterated that the Oyo State Government remained committed to maintaining acceptable public health standards, protecting the dignity of the dead and ensuring proper management of healthcare facilities across the state.
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