Tuesday 18th October, 2017, was a day the good people of Ondo will not forget in a hurry, no thanks to a wicked rumour of a forced vaccination coordinated by the military.
The rumour started at Uso, a community in Owo Local and spread like a wild fire to Ogbese, Oba-Ile, and before you could say Jack Robinson, parents and guardians were seen running helter-skelter.
Some desperate parents even scaled fences to forcibly take their wards away from schools.
When the State Government carried out its investigation; the story was found out to be a wicked lie from the pit of hell.
The Commissioner of Information and Orientation, Yemi Olowolabi described the rumour as baseless, unfounded and should be disregarded. Also, the Assistant Director Army Public Relations, Major Ojo Adelegan, denied the involvement of the Military and called on the public to disregard the information.
Not only that, Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Femi Joseph, said it was a wild rumour which has caused unnecessary panic in the state. All these statements successfully doused tension.
So, this morning I went round to see if normalcy and calmness have been restored. My first place of call was Ejioba High School, Oba-Ile, where I interacted with the Principal, Mr A. J. Adaja. Mr Adaja corroborated what I observed, that full normalcy has been restored and I see students in their classes learning.
At Fiwasaye High School, I met the Vice Principal (Administration), Mrs Aibinuomo Temilola, who said that the incidence didn’t affect the students turnout, lamented the misapplication of the various New Media Platforms by its users.
The situation at Ijapo High School was not different as I saw students in their classes taking lessons. A parent who spoke through phone at the Oyemekun Grammar School, expressed satisfaction with the current situation. According to him, ” what happened yesterday was disturbing for every parent but we have got assurances that the alarm was false.
“We have now put it behind. I drove my children to school just now and everything is going on well, ” he said.
