Vaatia College in Makurdi, Benue state, has been shut down by the Benue state government following the outbreak of a strange illness that has left nine students with mild paresis.

According to the State's Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Joseph Ngbea who confirmed the outbreak of the ailment, some of the patients have been discharged while few others are still hospitalized. He added that the ailment may be caused by ‘Golemba Syndrome’, a weakness that starts from the limbs upwards, as opposed to Poliomyelitis.

He disclosed that the students were on admission in the Teaching Hospital, giving the cause of the strange ailment as either being caused by a bacterial, fungal, or viral infection.