Nigerians have taken to social media to express outrage over the death of Ifunanya Nwangene, a 26-year-old aspiring singer who reportedly died on Saturday after a snake bite, with many blaming systemic failures in the country’s healthcare sector rather than the incident itself.
Netizens argue that Nwangene’s death could have been avoided if the hospitals she was taken to had antivenom readily available. According to reports, she was rushed to two different medical facilities after being bitten by a snake at her residence in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, but neither hospital was able to administer antivenom.
Ifunanya, who gained wider attention after participating in The Voice Nigeria in 2021 and later showcased her talent on TikTok, eventually died following the delay in treatment.
Describing the situation as heartbreaking and unacceptable, social media users noted that Nwangene’s case only gained attention because of her online popularity, stressing that similar incidents occur daily across the country without public notice.
Popular health influencer Aproko Doctor said the tragedy highlighted deep-rooted failures in Nigeria’s healthcare system.
“What if I tell you it is not the snake that killed her?” he asked. “Snakes bite people everywhere—in the bush or the city, in India, Australia, or other countries. But people do not die like this.”
He added, “They do not die just because they went to two hospitals and were told to their faces that there was no antivenom in a country where snakes live, in 2026, not 1980 or 1970. Nigeria even has a locally developed antivenom for Nigerian snakes called Echitab. The question is why wasn’t it in the fridges of the hospitals she went to? Simply because we have forgotten the basics.”
Aproko Doctor further criticized government priorities, saying, “Our politicians are building flyovers where ambulances don’t exist. We are focusing on ultramodern hospitals, when primary healthcare centers—the first point of call in any functioning country—should be working.”
Human rights activist and lawyer Dele Farotimi also weighed in, lamenting the decline of Nigeria’s medical institutions.
“The University College Hospital, Ibadan, was the preferred hospital for the Saudi royal family in the late 1950s and 1960s. It was that good,” he said. “But in 2026 Nigeria, lives are being lost because hospitals lack basic antivenins, while our doctors are all abroad.”
An animal and nature enthusiast known as Arojinle echoed similar concerns, stating, “UCH is among the top three medical facilities in Nigeria, yet it does not have antivenom. The same goes for Adeoyo State Hospital, the top state hospital in Ibadan. That is the reality of the country.”
He added, “I know someone who once needed antivenom. They went to 12 pharmacies without success and only found it at the 13th pharmacy.”
The incident has reignited public debate about the state of Nigeria’s healthcare system, particularly the availability of life-saving emergency treatments in hospitals across the country.
