Policy Briefs

Independent 2:13 pm , Tue, 7 April 20 (https://www.independent.ng/covid-19-prepare-for-the-worst-diplomat-tells-nigerians/) 
Awka – Former diplomat and Governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2017 Governorship election in Anambra State, Honourable Oseloka Henry Obaze, has cautioned the Federal Government not to relax its effort towards curbing Coronavirus in the country because the low headcount being recorded currently might just be due to poor contact tracing.

He said instead the country should prepare for a boom period when the reality downs on it.

In a statement issued in Awka, Obaze observed: “Federal authorities and NCDC continue to do their utmost in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Yet it is taking about 3-4 weeks to contact trace some travellers who returned into Nigeria from the U.S. and other hotspot countries.

“Regrettably from most Nigerians who should be observing social distancing, we are witnessing a false sense of security, due to the reported low headcount of the Covid-19 infections, which in actuality is relative to low testing count.”

Obaze said that granted that the low count might be because Nigeria is contiguously outside the orbit of the present hotspot countries, “Nigerians are peripatetic and heavy travellers, thus the incidence of infections will be high consequently, and relatively proportional to our high rate of travel as well as high rate of concealment of infections.

“The window remains vastly open that Nigeria may yet be hard hit down the line; as the exponential spread simmers beneath the surface.

“Now is time to strategize for that boom moment. Meanwhile, we must continue to aggressively identify, isolate and treat those already infected,” he concluded.

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