Authorities of the Godfrey Okoye University in Enugu State have issued a 21-day ultimatum to the families of 33 abandoned corpses in the hospital’s mortuary.

The school management said failure to comply with the evacuation order will result in the university proceeding with a mass burial for the deceased individuals.

At a news conference held in Enugu on Sunday, the university’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Christian Anieke, announced that the ultimatum given on November 13 has been deemed necessary to allow the university to carry out renovations on the mortuary.

He disclosed that some of the corpses had been in the mortuary for more than 18 years.

Anieke stated that the renovations and upgrades would make the mortuary fit for a teaching hospital.

He said, “We have got a court injunction to carry out mass burial of the 33 abandoned corpses in our teaching hospital morgue.

“Some of the corpses have been in the mortuary for more than 18 years and it is quite challenging as we want to renovate and make the hospital a befitting one for a teaching hospital.

“I am appealing to those who have corpses in the mortuary to come and remove them.

“We are talking about human beings here and not animals. Go and check if your relations are there.”

The teaching hospital’s Chief Medical Director, Prof. Cajetan Nwadinigwe, revealed that a significant number of corpses found in the facility lack proper identification.

During his remarks, Nwadinigwe added that 14 of the deceased individuals shared the same name.

He said there were no records of dates on which some of the corpses were deposited at the mortuary, while it was evident that some had been there for more than 10 years.

“This is our basis for approaching the court and advertising the warning in newspapers for families to see,’’ Nwadinigwe said.

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