In a bid to safeguard the lives and wellbeing of the people, the Rivers State government has moved against the sale of meat preserved with formalin across the State.

In furtherance of this, the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Charles Wogu recently inaugurated an emergency ad-hoc committee to mop up all such contaminated meat across abattoirs and markets in the State.

The committee, which mandate was to ensure the State was safe from the sales and distribution of meat contaminated with formalin, a dangerous chemical used in the preservation of corpses, has the Director of Livestock and Veterinary Services, Allswell Emejuru, as Chairman.

The Agriculture Commissioner, while inaugurating the committee during an emergency meeting with staff of the ministry and the National Butchers Union of Nigeria, Rivers State chapter in Port Harcourt, charged the committee to submit their reports back to the ministry in three days.

Wogu urged members of the public not to panic, assuring them that the situation will be put under control, noting that it was for the overall health benefit of the people of the State.

Meanwhile, the Chairman, National Butchers Union of Nigeria, Rivers State chapter, Musa Baba Ahmed, who is also a member of the committee said the union under his watch will also ensure the situation was  handled effectively and report back to the ministry.

It may be recalled that there was palpable tension when the news broke that an alleged contaminated meat preserved with formalin was been sold to the members of the public in some markets in the State.