By Ebun Sessou
Hon. Avoseh Hodewu Suru, member Lagos State House of Assembly and Chairman  House committee on Health representing Badagry constituency is the sponsor of the bill seeking to legalise voluntary cremation and unclaimed corpse in the state.

In this interview with Saturday Vanguard, he explains among other issues why such law in important while also emphasizing that unclaimed corpses filled mortuaries in the state.  He states: “The intent of the law is on unclaimed corpses and voluntary cremation. We are not praying for our dead to suffer but this has been happening somewhere.”  Excerpts

What informed this bill on cremation?

The cremation bill that we are working on in the House of Assembly is a bill that emanate from our visit to the various mortuaries in the state. In the sixth Assembly, the house through the observation of a member who was on a visit to the state mortuaries reported what he saw at the mortuaries; that eventually made the House to ask the committee on health to do the same in order to see the state of all mortuaries in the state. Their evaluation prompted the House to take action but unfortunately, they couldn’t do much before the election.

But, when the seventh Assembly resumed, the leadership of the house set up an adhoc committee headed by the leader of the House, Hon Ajibayo Adeyeye and other members. We went to all the mortuaries and our visit revealed the states of mortuaries in the State is in a devastating condition. In fact, the decomposition of the unclaimed corpses degenerated to a point of emergency.

Our findings shows that the mortuary worker were not informed that the health reform law allows for mass burial every six week. Any corpse that is unclaimed after six weeks after which autopsy has been carried out and there is no one to claim them, then they should be taken for mass burial. When we saw that, we informed the commissioner for health, Dr. Jide Idris to order the officials in the mortuaries to embark on mass burial. Approval was given for all the corpses in the mortuaries to be moved for mass burial. After a week, we went back to the mortuaries and what we saw was devastating.

Hon. Avoseh Hodewu Suru

Secondly, the problem encountered by the health officers was also a thing of worry. There was also the level of resistance and humiliation from the community. Most often, they are humiliated and chased out of the environment. The community didn’t also allow mass burial during the day. They prefer it to be done at night. So, it is always war between the community and the health officers. The threat to life is a thing of concern because what was oozing out of the mortuaries was horrible. This is not a negligence on the side of the attendant but the number of corpses deposited either through accident scenes or extra judicial killings. It is on this note that the House was briefed and we discovered that the state government is already putting up a crematorium. It brought to our minds the type of cremation we have been hearing about either in China, India. So, it is a modernised one but we are not satisfied  with the feeling. So, we sought an alternative and we came up with a bill.

What is the situation of mortuaries and cemeteries in the state presently?

There are lots of unclaimed corpses that cannot be identified. It is an eyesore. This is Lagos where land is our oil. Nobody is ready to release lands to build mortuaries. In Atan cemetery, the situation of things is beyond imagination. And there is limitation to the period to which a particular corpse can be allowed to be in the ground. Sources told us that the peak period for a corpse in Atan cemetery is one year. After which the corpse would be dug out. We are not insisting on the bill but this is a problem that must be addressed.

We have been to all the cemeteries outside the country and we discovered there are different kinds of cemeteries. They include underground, above the soil, and they are always clean. What we have decided to do is to ensure that the cremation bill is adequately handled. And we also deemed it fit that before any law is passed, it must be discussed in the public place so as to allow for public opinions. The cremation bill we are talking about is not to cremate all the dead in Lagos State. It is not a bill intended that any dead body should be cremated. It is a bill seeking a law for voluntary cremation  of unclaimed corpses at various hospitals. For Lagos State government, the cremation is a systemic burning and that is to be carried out on all the unclaimed corpses in Lagos State. We have had the views of the religious leaders and by the time, the bill reaches its final stage at the floor of the house, then it will be presented to the public.

Was there any consultation to hear out the views of the people?

From the inception, we know that it is a controversial bill, but our responsibility is to make law and that is what we are doing. There is no bill that does not generate controversy. We know that this particular bill would generate lots of criticism and controversy. Nobody would see the way cremation is done that wouldn’t revolt, a situation where corpses are thrown to naked fire which takes place in other parts of the world. But, in Lagos, the cremation is a systemic burning, we have done our work. Although, the religious leaders are already raising their voices against it but what we are talking about is the cremation of unclaimed corpses that are in the mortuaries. And it is the same process that led to mass burial that leads to cremation. The intent of the law is on unclaimed corpses and voluntary cremation. We are not praying for our dead to suffer but this has been happening somewhere. It is not peculiar to Lagos State alone.

Why can’t the state provide lands for new cemeteries?

Nobody is ready to part his or her land. The state government would be happy to receive volunteers for mass burial.

Are you saying the State does not have lands?

There is no dispute that lands belong to state government but the fact remains that Lagosians have encroached on the lands in Lagos state.  No village is ready to accept mass burial in their community, perhaps, because of the spiritual attachment to corpses.