President Mohammadu Buhari broadcast on Monday, on the cumulative lockdown order in the country, particularly in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja in the ongoing war against the coronavirus came with a sigh of relief from most residents of the affected states including Anambra who had been forced to remain indoors for about one month following measures to curb the spread of the disease.
Tribune Online has early reported that the President, during his address, said the proportion of cases imported from other countries has reduced to only 19% of new cases, showing that the country border closures yielded positive results.
In Anambra state, despite the reopening of movement of people, places of worship, restaurants, food and drug markets, but in strict observation of government and World Health Organization’s directives on preventing the spread of the disease, residents are still lamenting on the absence of the Federal government palliatives presence in the state.
Reacting to the development, the Anambra state chairman, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Demain Okeke-Ogene, while urging the President to urgently save the harsh situation the people are passing through, as a result of the Novel pandemic, disclosed that the people of the South East region (Igbo’s), are yet to feel the impact of the Federal government palliatives set aside for the vulnerable in the country to cushion the lockdown effect.
On the distribution of rice by FG, the Ohanaeze chairman, called on the south-east governors to emulate their south-west counterpart by involving the services of National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) to certify the product before distributing it to her citizens, to avoid other outbreak in the region, whenever they are called for.
He also appealed to the Federal government palliatives committee, to use the office, irrespective of tribe, religion and politics to give out the palliatives evenly.
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While commending the president, on his commitment to the welfare of Nigerians, Okeke, assure that the Igbos will continue to play safely in accordance with the government directive to end the COVID-19 spread.
He urged the 36 states governors to continue to enforce land border closure, as part of the containment strategy.
The government has played a responsive part with the recent Buhari broadcast, adding that the responsibility of safety now lies with the people, he added.
The Chief Medical Director, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojuckwu University Teaching Hospital, Dr Basil Nwankwo, said the signing of Memorandum of Understanding on the provision of hazard allowance to health workers and the training of ten thousand health workers across the country, has shown that Nigerian government at all level are committed to fighting the global disease, noted that at COOUTH, medical workers were already trained by the management to contain the virus.
Also speaking to Tribune Online, on the FG palliatives, the state chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Jerry Nnobia, said no workers in the state have received anything from the federal government, urging the president to extend the gesture to workers in the entire south-east region.
Dr Ucheche Raymond Ekpe, an eye specialist based in Awka, on his part, said the president broadcast, does not make sense to him because those commission to see to the COVID-19 affairs of health workers are only doing that on pen and paper.
He pleaded with the President to carry every Nigeria along on palliatives and not a particular section, for the interest of oneness, as sorted by Nigeria founding fathers, late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe.
Mr Nwachukwu Oguikpu, who had his hand-sewn face mask on, boarded a clustered public transport to Onitsha but noted that the misconceptions that people attach to the disease largely determine their choices to either observe the health safety guidelines or not.
A hotel staff manager in Awka, Mr Patrick Mbaleke, said that even though a lot was expected of the government to ameliorate the effects of the lockdown, it was important that people understood the need to protect themselves by adhering to the best preventive directives.
For Mr Emeka Okafor, the government should do more to ensure that the people, especially the poor, who are caught on the wrong side of the current circumstance, receive more interventions.
The state commissioner for information and public enlightenment, Mr C. Don Adinuba, who promised to speak more later via a statement, said the relaxation of the lockdown in Anambra state is part of government’s plans to ease social and economic hardship resulting from the stay-at-home directives.
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