I found something interesting in IVerify - No, the cholera case recorded in Lusaka Province is not the first case in 5 years.

No, the cholera case recorded in Lusaka Province is not the first case in 5 years.

Misleading

According to the Minister of Health, Hon. Sylvia T. Masebo, Lusaka has recorded a cholera case. Similar cases were previously recorded between October 2017 to June 2018, which is within the past five (5) years.

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Verified May, 13 2022

Claim

The Patriotic Front Facebook Page published a photo of the Minister of Health, Hon Sylvia Masebo, on 11th April 2022, with the caption stating that Lusaka district has recorded the first cholera case in five (5) years. The post attracted over a hundred reactions from the general public, with some of the views alleging that the New Dawn government has caused the first cholera case in the stated period.

Rating Justification

The fact-checking process has determined as misleading the claim by the Patriotic Front Facebook Page that Lusaka Province has recorded the first cholera case in five (5) years.
On the 11th of April 2022, the Minister of Health, Hon. Sylvia T. Masebo informed the press and the public that the Country had recorded a cholera case in Lusaka’s Mutendere compound.

“I wanted to inform you and the nation at large that we have admitted to Kalingalinga clinic a 3-year-old girl with cholera. This girl comes from Mutendere compound and is currently in stable condition. She presented with severe acute diarrhea and vomiting, and our health workers investigated for cholera which has been confirmed.” Hon. Masebo said. To get clarity on the matter, iVerify further reviewed several Ministry of Health statements and documents related to the Cholera disease situation in Lusaka and the rest of the country. According to the findings, Lusaka district recorded cases of cholera which lasted from October 2017 to June 2018, which is not five (5) years ago. Therefore, it is true that Lusaka district has recorded a cholera case as of 11th April 2022, but not true that this is the first case recorded in 5 years. Hence the claim that cholera breaks out in Lusaka after 5 years is misleading.

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