By Suleyman Dunoma Abuja
The Kano State government has initiated premarital screening for 1,800 prospective couples as part of the criteria for marriage, aimed at ensuring their health fitness and preventing the transmission of diseases within the community.
This is just as about N800 million, has been budgeted to organize the wedding ceremony, while beds and other necessary items needed to provide for the couples have been bought.
However, a date for the mass wedding, according to Feeler will be announced to make the ceremony a colourful day.
The Commissioner of Health, Dr. Abubakar Yusuf made the disclosure while inspecting the exercise at the premises of Hisbah Board Headquarters.
According to him, the screening exercise is aimed at avoiding transmitting diseases to each other and the community.
This was contained in a statement signed by the information officer, Kano State Agency for the Control of Aids (SACA) Aminu Bello, a copy made to pressmen in Kano.
The statement disclosed that they are conducting eight different types of tests ranging from Genotype, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis A, B and C, and syphilis, among others.
The Commissioner further disclosed that when in the course of the work, they find any of the diseases, those that can be treated, can be treated right away and those that need referral can be sent to a facility for further care or action.
Dr Labaran however stated that the State government will soon promulgate a law that will enforce the premarital screening before wedlock
He commended the actions of Imams in the state for insisting on seeing the premarital certificate before consummating marriages, even prior to the transmission of the bill.
Earlier, the Director General of KSACA Dr. Usman Bashir said the screening will be held on a cluster basis within 2 weeks and will cover 30 to 50 sets of couples from each of the 44 local government councils.
He commended Governor Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf for approving the ongoing screening to ascertain health fitness including HIV/AIDS status.
