Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has tested positive for the novel
coronavirus. “I just received my COVID-19 confirmation test result. It
is POSITIVE. I am asymptomatic and will continue to self-isolate,”
Makinde tweeted on Monday evening. “I have designated Prof Temitope
Alonge, former Chief Medical Director of the University College, Ibadan,
as the Head of COVID-19 Task Force while I recover fully. Please
continue to comply with all the directives from the COVID-19 Task Force.
Stay home, stay safe,” he added.
According to Makinde, the dusk to dawn curfew – from 7pm to 6am has taken effect from Monday. He
instructed: “No gatherings of more than 10 people should be held
anywhere in Oyo state from tonight. Sunday, March 29, 2020. All markets
will be closed except those selling perishable food items”. He added
that inter-state transportation into and out of the state has been
suspended from Sunday March 29, 2020; “Except vehicles carrying food
items, medical, pharmaceutical and petroleum products. All measures will
be reviewed on a weekly basis”.
Makinde is the third governor to test positive for the virus.
Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and his Kaduna State counterpart,
Malam Nasir El-Rufai, had earlier tested positive. Makinde’s test
results came as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control registered 20 new
cases of the coronavirus. “Twenty new cases of #COVID19 have been
reported in Nigeria; 13 in Lagos, 4 in FCT, 2 in Kaduna and 1 in Oyo
State,” the NCDC said on Twitter on Monday. “As at 09:00 pm 30th March
there are 131 confirmed cases of #COVID19 reported in Nigeria with 2
deaths.”
Health Minister, Osagie Ehanire, also announced Monday that Nigeria
has recorded the second death from coronavirus. “Till date, three
persons have been discharged after successful treatment,” Ehanire said.
”But sadly, another fatality was recorded over the weekend in the person
of a patient who had severe underlying illnesses.” Ehanire, also said more testing sites will soon be accredited and
deployed to quicken the pace of treatment for Covid-19 patients. He said
that the ministry was in the process of converting and reconfiguring
the machines used for testing tuberculosis patients in various hospitals
so that thry can be used for testing Covid-19 cases.
Speaking
at a press conference by the Presidential Taskforce on containment of
Coronavirus in Abuja on Monday, Ehanire said the NCDC had added a new
laboratory to its network of molecular laboratories for COVID-19. He
said: “We are also working hard to open-up as many testing sites as
possible. With new additions to the case definition, persons with fever
and either cough, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath in an area
of medium or high prevalence of COVID-19, can test for the disease”.
The minister said that in order to meet the demand that will arise as
a result of this expansion of the case definition, the NCDC has added a
new laboratory to its network of molecular laboratories for COVID-19.
“This is the Virology Laboratory of University College Hospital, Oyo
State. We project that in three (3) weeks, seven (7) more labs in
Abakiliki, Kaduna, Kano, Maiduguri, Port Harcourt and Sokoto will be
added to this network to further expand testing capacity nationwide.
“I urge the members of the public to note that testing is free and at
no cost to the public. Anyone demanding to be paid or given a tip
should be immediately reported to the appropriate authorities. Importantly, there are no Rapid Diagnostic Tests available that have
been WHO validated, because they often give unreliable results. Unless
you have been tested in one of the six molecular laboratories for
COVID-19 in Nigeria, your results are most likely useless. If you think
you fit the case definition of a suspect case, please call the NCDC or
your State hotline for immediate testing. This is the only way to ensure
you get suitable treatment.” Ehanire also said that as the situation
evolves, the ministry will focus on using limited resources on those
persons, who actually need them most critically; from testing to
treatment of confirmed cases.
The country’s first death was confirmed on Monday 23rd March. The
deceased, Suleiman Achimugu, was a former managing director of Pipelines
and Product Marketing Company. The NCDC said the 67-year old Achimugu
returned home following medical treatment in the UK. Nigeria has
recorded 131 cases so far and eight people have recovered from the
global pandemic. In a bid to contain coronavirus in Nigeria, President
Muhammadu Buhari, on Sunday night announced the shutdown of Lagos, the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Ogun State.
“Based on the advice of the Federal Ministry of Health and the
Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), I am directing the cessation
of all movements in Lagos and the FCT for an initial period of 14 days
with effect from 11:00 p.m. on Monday, March 30, 2020,” Buhari said. The
president said the government would use the “containment period to
identify, trace and isolate all individuals that have come into contact
with confirmed cases. Over 35,000 have died while more than 700, 000 persons have so far been infected worldwide.
STAY SAFE WITH CORONAVIRUS
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