Early last month (April), I came across the devastating news of the death of five notable Nigerians. They are Mu’azu Suleiman, a nephew to the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III; Engineer Aminu Umar, Walin Zazzau and district head of Ikara; and Hon. Mohammed Ibrahim Idris, a former House of Representatives member and son to ex-governor Ibrahim Idris of Kogi state.
Others are Hajiya Saratu Gidado, a veteran Kennywood thespian popularly known as Daso; and Ahmad Olarewaju Belgore, younger brother to a former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Alfa Belgore.
Olarewaju Belgore, also a retired Justice of the Court of Appeal, reportedly broke his Ramadan fast with some family members on the eve of the Eid el-Fitr festivity and died about two hours later.
“He was not sick and even broke his last Ramadan fast with family members on Tuesday night. The whole incident happened in less than two hours. I think his time was up,” a source said.
Equally, Mu’azu Suleiman, the sultan’s nephew, was said to be hale and hearty, but died shortly after saying his dawn prayer. Similarly, Hon. Muhammed Ibrahim Idris died in the morning of the recent Eid el-Fitr celebration. He reportedly slumped at his Abuja residence.
Aminu Umar died after participating in all the Sallah durbar and other Eid el-Fitr activities, last month. Confirming the death, Abdullahi Aliyu Kwarbai, head, media and publicity of Zazzau Emirate, said that the deceased participated in the Hawan Daushe Sallah durbar in Zaria, and was one of the district heads that paid the Emir of Zazzau, Mallam Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli, Sallah homage.
As for Daso, a local radio station in Kano state had announced that the renowned actress died in her sleep. Her family members explained that Daso failed to wake up on the morning of April 9, 2024, after taking her sahur (pre-dawn meal) before the commencement of the day’s ramadan fast.
Truly, we all have an appointment with the grim reaper – death – sooner or later. Some of us will exit this universe through an auto or plane crash. Others will die after battling all sorts of ailments. Some of our brethren, folks and kinsmen will become immortals after terrorists, bandits, trigger-happy cops, and all types of criminals violently attack them.
Again, there are persons who will bid farewell to our planet without succumbing to any disease or being involved in an accident. The five aforementioned personalities clearly fall into the latter group.
They died suddenly or, more appropriately, they experienced what medical experts, not this writer, term ‘sudden death’. According to the fifth edition of Cardiovascular Pathology, a medical journal, published in 2022, sudden death is defined as a natural, unexpected fatal event occurring within one hour from the onset of symptoms, in an apparently healthy subject, or in one whose disease was not so severe to predict such an abrupt outcome.
Another expert definition notes: “sudden death is a sudden and unexpected cardiac arrest that occurs in people who appear to be in good health”. Medically, there is no possible way to prevent or control sudden death, as it is unexpected.
It is not only the elite (wealthy individuals) that experience sudden death. Even ordinary people do. The cases of the latter are not just prominent. In January last year, a distant relation of this writer – a mother of three – slumped and died in a mysterious manner, right in front of her husband. The victim, according to her then bereaved relations, was doing her laundry in their compound, before her hubby, sitting in their living room, called her.
She quickly left her laundry to answer her spouse’s call. However, she fell, and passed away after opening their living room’s door to meet her better half, who was sitting on a sofa.
During the titanic semi-final clash between our darling Eagles and South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, at the last African Cup of Nations soccer fiesta in Ivory Coast this year, we lost some of our fellow citizens, including Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in Delta state. In the wake of the tragic incident, the Nigerian Cardiac Society, in a medical advisory, explained some factors that trigger instant death, and how Nigerians can avoid ‘joining their ancestors’, untimely.
According to the society, the causes of sudden death are as varied as its presentation. It said: “They include complications of hypertension, heart attack, stroke, heart failure, cardiomyopathies, valvular disorders, pulmonary thromboembolism, aortic aneurysms, status epilepticus, inherited arrhythmogenic channelopathies (including long QT syndrome, Wolf Parkinson white Syndrome, familial Brugada syndrome and short QT syndrome).
“The risk of sudden death varies with the cardiovascular risk factor, the severity of the disease, genetics, and other precipitating factors among which may be acute stressful reactions, to which the link with these recent deaths can be associated. It must be emphasised that many of these cardiovascular risk factors are without symptoms and signs”.
The society observed that screening is the only effective mechanism for early identification and appropriate control and prevention of sudden death among the populace. It also identified sports and other emotional events as triggers of arrhythmias, heart attacks, and strokes in those with underlying heart conditions.
The society therefore urged all Nigerians to learn the warning signs of cardiac distress and how to respond in an emergency. “Know your family history and risk factors and get regular screenings. Take steps to manage conditions like hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Avoid smoking, eat healthy, exercise, and manage stress.
“For those with heart disease, take medications as prescribed and follow your doctor’s advice. Have emergency numbers handy and do not hesitate to call for help. Warning symptoms preceding a sudden death may include chest pain, breathlessness, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and fainting attacks. It should be noted that left-sided chest pain should not be taken with levity and should warrant a medical examination”.
No one needs to be reminded that how we die is also part of fulfilling our ultimate destiny, as ordained by Allah (God). It is what both Nigerian Muslims and Christians, particularly, believe in. Nevertheless, there are ways to still reduce the number of citizens dying unexpectedly.
It is pertinent that the federal government jerks up the funding for health, as part of encouraging early and regular screening for cardiovascular risk factors. Among other things, institutionalising effective cardiovascular care among Nigerians by providing adequate facilities for the hospitals, encouraging adequate remuneration for health workers to discourage brain drain in the health sector, and promoting effective lifestyle modification to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease among the population, are also fundamental.
Dying is absolutely inevitable, but sudden death is preventable. By doing everything possible to maintain and safeguard our mental, physical and psychological health, we would be ensuring that our earthly voyage is not cut short abruptly. A stitch in time saves nine!
Mahmud, deputy editor of PRNigeria, writes from Abuja via [email protected].
