By Ishaya Ibrahim, News Editor
The Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has lockdown Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area for 14 days after a man in the area tested positive for the Covid-19.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) listed Kogi among the state’s with the coronavirus on May 27 after a back and forth with the state’s governor who was skeptical in allowing testing.
NCDC officials had visited Kogi State in early May but left when the state governor ordered that the test be done on them first.
“It was drama today (May 7) at the Kogi State Government House as officials of the National Center for Disease Control sent to ascertain the COVID-19 status flee the. The Officials of the NCDC said they were sent to the State to assist the state in responding to the challenges posed by the pandemic. The Officials said they were not ready to be tested for COVID-19 and went back to Abuja,” Kogi State Commissioner for Information Kingsley Fanwo had said.
At a press conference on Monday, June 1, Bello, said the lockdown, which was to commence from 12.00 am on Tuesday, June 2, would enable verification and authenticity of the claims by the NCDC that the virus has entered the state.
The NCDC had claimed that an Islamic Cleric, Sheikh Abubakar Ejibunu, the Chief Iman of Kabba, had tested positive for the disease. But Kogi state government is reluctant to believe that claim.
According to the governor, the government decided to be proactive over the verification as members of the the family of the acclaimed victim, Sheikh Ejibunu, along with 13 other persons in Kabba-Bunu Local Government have already been tested for COVID-19 and their results returned negative.
He said, “We shall not relent in verifying the genuineness of the NCDC claim and we remain resolute in pursuing the matter to a logical conclusion.
“Government has already put necessary machinery in place to contain the spread of the novel Coronavirus pandemic as prevention they say, is better than cure,” Bello said.
Bello also directed the Incident Management Team of Covid-19 in the state, headed by the commissioner for Health, Dr Saka Haruna Audu, to embark on immediate door-to-door visitation of residents of the council area for collation of samples for test.
The governor also ordered a 14-day isolation of medical personnel and other persons at the Federal Medical Center, Lokoja, who accompanied the index case to Abuja.
He further directed security agencies in the state to ensure complete enforcement of the lockdown in Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area and ensure adherence to all the federal government and NCDC protocols.
The governor condemned the failure of the NCDC to involve Kogi State government in its investigation processes before announcing two index cases of COVID-19 in the state, describing the action as “unhealthy and unprofessional.’’
“However, we still maintain that Kogi remains COVID-19 free at the moment, urging citizens of the state to continue to observe all the NCDC protocols in curtailing the spread of the dreaded disease,” Bello said