A Funeral Service in honour of the brave, patriotic “Heroine Of The Day” Dr Ameyo Stella Adadevoh was held Friday at Holy Cross Cathedral near City Hall, Lagos Island at 10:00 am. Dr Adadevoh died on August 19, 2014 from Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) after contracting it from the late Partrick Sawyer, the Liberia-born American index case who imported it into Nigeria.

 

The late doctor was born on Saturday,  October 27,  1956 in Lagos, Nigeria. She was 58.

 

Last night, at least 2,000 Nigerians gathered to pour encomiums on Dr Adadevoh, the late Consultant endocrinologist at First Consultants Medical Centre, Obalende, Lagos,  as her funeral rites began with the Night of Tributes.

 

Family members, friends, colleagues, associates, well-wishers from a wide segment of society and representatives of the medical profession eulogised the deceased, describing the death of the loving, fearless, committed, tireless and selfless professional, even into death, as painful after a candlelight procession in her honour at Harbour Point Naval Base, Lagos.

 

At the solemn Catholic service of songs and tributes presided over by Rev. Father Paul Kehinde Ijasan of Church of the Assumption, Falomo Parish and choir from the church and Old Queens School, Ibadan at Harbour Point, Victoria Island, torrents of heart-warming tributes were paid to her while deafening calls for national recognition for the late doctor overflowed.

 

Ijasan, in his sermon, eulogised her as a fallen hero to humanity, emphatic that despite her death, she was still alive because she gave her life to save thousands of lives that would have been infected by the deadly Ebola disease if she had released Sawyer.

 

The cleric added, “It is good to be good. Whatever we do today will definitely speak for us. Every family who witnessed the tributes for Adadevoh will definitely get home and ask the question: What will they say after I left this world?” “She was a hero because laying down one’s life for others to live is not something that comes by chance. So, the circumstances surrounding her death are a reflection of her true life, her character.

 

   

“The fact that we have people singing and praising her today is not accidental. That is what she was while alive. “So singing praises today is not because of her role in the issue of Ebola. She has always been like that. Imagine a situation whereby, maybe, when she discovered that the person was an Ebola patient, she ran away. Imagine what would have happened in the country today. But she controlled the situation. Nothing comes by chance. “She was a woman of noble character, which is lacking in our country today. People should emulate her.”

 

Among others who paid tributes were, Association of General and Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria (AGPMPN), Endocrinology and Metabolism Society of Nigeria (EMSN),  Dr. Yemi Johnson, Dr. Bode Karounwi and  Dr. Efunbo Dosekun and her son Bankole Cardoso

 

Dr. Yemi Johnson, a consultant cardiac surgeon, said: “Ameyo called me that she had Ebola patient in her hospital. I don’t know why God chose Ameyo for this. Two years back, when swine flu came to Nigeria, it was Ameyo again and she called to inform me. “I do wonder why it is always her. Maybe others may not have been able to diagnose it on time, that is why God chose her. “The question we should ask ourselves is: What are we going to do next? Are we going to let things continue like this? We don’t need to lay the blame on government alone because it is our country. We need to help ourselves.”

 

Dr. Bode Karonwi said: “She was academically sound. When we were in medical school, Ameyo was a first class candidate. She was so loving and courageous, a rare human being. In her generation, she was an exemplary human being. She cared about people so much.”

 

Prof. David R. Williams of Harvard School of Public Health, United States, who sent his tributes through Miss Irene Fowler said: “…Nigerians will one day reflect on the heroism and sacrifice she made in keeping Sawyer quarantined. She sacrificed her life to protect Nigeria from Ebola. Physicians around the world pay tribute to Adadevoh. I lend my voice to the long list.”

 

Her family, friends and colleagues have set up a health trust in Adadevoh’s honour and a website and email address for tributes and information. The website is www.forevermissed.com/ameyo-stella-adadevoh while the email address is: [email protected].