BUNIA – In Congo, an unexpected outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola has caught residents off guard, having spread unnoticed for weeks. Initially suspected to involve hundreds of cases when declared in May, the outbreak was dismissed by many as a mere “Western conspiracy.”
Congo’s health officials announced the Ebola outbreak on May 15. By Wednesday, at least 62 fatalities were reported among 363 confirmed cases. The response has been complicated by widespread skepticism, attacks on healthcare professionals, and the spread of misinformation.
In Bunia, the capital of the eastern Ituri province where the outbreak is concentrated, journalist Vérité Johnson has taken action. As the editorial secretary at Radio Télévision Mont Bleu, Johnson launched a new radio program aimed at dispelling rumors and misinformation.
This radio broadcast has become an essential resource for reaching residents who remain uninformed or doubtful about the Bundibugyo outbreak’s realities.
Airing every day at 10 a.m., the 45-minute show educates listeners on the dangers of the virus, featuring health experts who provide the latest updates and answer questions. Throughout the day, jingles about the virus play, and locals have the opportunity to call in with their inquiries.
“So far, there’s still a layer of resistance within the population, and that’s where the media plays an important role,” Johnson said.
Resistance to protocols during public health emergencies is common in Congo, which is battling its 17th Ebola outbreak since the virus was first identified there in 1976. There currently is no approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo type of Ebola, which has added another layer of fear.
Widespread rumors, often arising from fear and misinformation, discourage residents from adhering to health warnings or seeking medical help during an outbreak, health officials say. People often hear about a disease through the media as authorities and international partners scramble to contain the outbreak.
Unfounded rumors link Ebola to money
Some residents allege illnesses like Ebola are elevated by opportunists trying to profit.
“They don’t separate people who have Ebola from those who have the flu at the hospital. Given the manner in which people are treated, we deduce it is about money,” said Samson Gerson, 52-year-old Bunia resident and father of seven children. “I can never take the vaccine, I prefer to die because if the vaccine arrives, it can scare us even more.”
Analysts say some people in Congo have been receptive to disinformation due to mistrust of the healthcare system and because some local officials have not become actively involved in containing the disease.
“What is key is to involve the local actors at all levels. If we try to impose what we think is right to the community, we are running towards failure,” said Basile Rambaud, emergency programs director for Mercy Corps in Congo. “If people do not trust the response, they end up delaying to seek care, rejecting protective measures, or avoiding working with health teams, giving the virus more time to spread.”
Ituri province residents have launched at least three attacks against health centers, demanding the bodies of deceased patients. Some people who are believed to have Ebola left the centers during the attacks and health workers could not account for their whereabouts.
“We don’t even know what the body of a person who died of Ebola looks like, but we just see images and montages on our phone,” said Bunia resident Chantal Francine, who expressed doubts over the reported deaths.
Full scale of the outbreak is unknown
The virus has rapidly spread from an initial three health zones to 24, according to World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who said Wednesday that the virus “had a big start.”
Experts and WHO officials have warned the numbers might not reflect the true scale of the epidemic as weeks of testing for the wrong type caused a delay in containing the virus.
The outbreak has been worsened by an ongoing armed conflict between Congo’s government and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group, as well as attacks by the Islamic State-affiliated group the Allied Democratic Force, which killed 16 people in Beni territory in North Kivu on Tuesday.
The attacks by both groups have caused massive displacement of people living in the conflict areas, officials said.
Despite the growing Bundibugyo outbreak and the conditions that are enabling the disease to spread, Johnson said Radio Télévision Mont Bleu continues providing residents with vital facts.
“Everyone is free to think what they want, but the information remains the same. The epidemic is here,” Johnson said.
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Adetayo reported from Lagos, Nigeria.
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