Obaseki makes wearing of facemasks compulsory, rolls out measures to check second wave of COVID-19

Governor, Godwin Obaseki of Edo State on Wednesday announced that wearing of facemasks in public places is mandatory in the state as he rolled out measures to combat the second wave of the Coronavirus pandemic in the state.

Obaseki, who gave the directive in a state broadcast, also announced the reintroduction of restrictions and reactivation of disease surveillance and management protocols, including public health and safety guidelines to fortify the state government’s efforts at flattening the curve of the second wave of the virus.

“In line with the Federal Government directive, we have adjusted our curfew to now begin from 12 mid-night to 4 am daily, beginning from today, December 23, 2020, except on December 31st, 2020,” he announced.

The governor added that as part of the measures, all schools in the state would remain shut until January 18, 2021.

According to him, “the government has decided to reintroduce the following measures in Edo State to limit the spread of the second wave of COVID-19, particularly during this holiday period: Wearing of facemask is mandatory in public places; there should be a drastic reduction in number of people attending religious, political and social gatherings in one place; people are advised not to patronize or enter any public facility without hand wash station, provided with soap and running water; Make use of hand sanitisers and observe adequate hand hygiene.”

Obaseki noted that “The reason why I decided to address you today is to bring to your attention that the second wave of covid-19, which has been ravaging the world, has now hit us in Edo State”.

As of December 23 morning, he said that the state had recorded 32 active cases with 4 new cases in the last 24 hours.

“Experts have warned that from experience, the second wave in any epidemic is usually larger than the first. This is why as a government we are very concerned”, the governor reemphasised.

“Arising from the experience, which we gained during the last outbreak of COVID-19, we now have in place a robust disease surveillance system in the state with well-trained contact tracers, who can undertake active case searches; we have 4 PCR molecular laboratories that can undertake large numbers of tests with procedures to promptly obtain results from the laboratories”, he enthused.

Reassuring the government’s readiness to manage active cases and check the spread of the virus, the governor stated: “our case management system is intact to provide care for confirmed cases. We also have 4 well-equipped, functional isolation centres spread across the state.”

“Even though we have created the capacity to respond to the new outbreak of COVID-19, our strategy to cope with the second wave is to decrease the incidence of the disease and decrease the mortality from the disease”, he added

To decrease the number of COVID-19 cases and reduce deaths from the second wave, Obaseki added that emphasis would be on public enlightenment, and urged the residents to avoid crowded places, closed places and close contact with other people.

While appreciating that during the yuletide period, there would normally be a lot of interactions with family and friends, he urged the people “to sacrifice this old practice so that we can be alive to enjoy many more Xmas and year-end activities in future”.

“Market unions and trade associations are encouraged to rally their members to adhere to public health and safety guidelines outlined to halt the spread of the disease. Do not sell items to anyone not wearing facemasks so that they don’t put your life at risk,” he directed.

Obaseki urged all Edo residents to be circumspect so as not to lose their loved ones as they go about celebrating during the yuletide season, adding that “in as much as the government will enforce the rules relating to COVID-19 in Edo State, it is important that each and every one of us take personal responsibility to protect ourselves and the people around us. We must abide by all public health and safety measures to ensure that we are safe.”

“We appreciate the burden and dislocation which these restrictions cause our citizens and hope that with the discovery of the COVID-19 vaccines, this would be the last wave of the epidemic we would have to deal with.

“Just as we collectively fought the first wave of COVID-19 together earlier this year, if we remember to wash our hands regularly with soap and water, keep a safe distance from other people and wear facemasks when in public, we will similarly overcome this wave”, the governor further pleaded.

The governor appealed to the people to stay indoor, ” except it is absolutely necessary to go out.”

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