Strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols, as prescribed by the World Health Organisation and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is the only thing that can stem community transmission of the virus, Chris Ezem, chairman, Abia State Inter-ministerial Committee on COVID-19 says.
Ezem, made the observation, at the official launch of COVID-19 community sensitisation committees, held at the Aba Town Hall, Aba South Local Government Area of Abia State.
The committees are to carry out awareness campaigns in their various localities to stop community spread of the virus.
Ezem, who is also secretary to Abia State Government, urged residents of the State to take their destinies in their hands, by observing all COVID-19 protocols, of constant washing of hands and use of sanitizer, wearing of facemasks and social distancing.
He also appealed to traditional rulers to preach the same message in their communities, saying, “If all of us begin to observe COVID-19 protocols, we will stop the community spread of the virus.
“We all should be ambassadors of Covid-19. Observe all the protocols of COVID-19. Stop hanging your facemasks on your forehead. If you are hanging your facemask on your forehead or on your chic, you are not observing COVID-19 protocols.
“You have to protect yourselves if somebody comes to you and he/she is not putting on a facemask, please, tell the person to step back.
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“If you are wearing a face shield without a facemask, you are not protecting yourself. Anybody sitting next to you must wear a facemask and that is the way you can protect yourself.
He continued, “This preaching and sermon should start from our homes, churches; it should go on in the market place. Ensure that a buyer must put on a facemask. The seller also should wear a facemask.
“That is the only way we can stop the transmission of this virus. For transporters, make sure you carry the minimum passengers as prescribed by NCDC. Ensure that your passengers wear facemasks before boarding your tricycle (Keke) or vehicle.
“And if the driver is not wearing a facemask, It is the responsibility of the passenger to insist that he puts-on his facemask.
“Also if a Keke operator wants to carry more than the prescribed number, passengers must not allow him.
“So, all of us must become ambassadors of COVID-19. We must preach it everywhere. And we are equally saying that we must not tolerate burials above the minimum number prescribed.
“And for any wedding or burial to take place in the State, the celebrants in the case of a wedding and family of the dead must fill a form obtainable at the office of the Chairman of the Local Government Area, where the events will take place.
“And a copy of the endorsed approval, will be sent to the Police to monitor the event and take photographs.
“So we are taking his very serious going forward. And we will want the committees to begin to carry the message to the wards, market places, churches, and communities”.
He also explained that community testing for COVID-19 is going on in all the 17 local government areas of the State and appealed to residents to take advantage of it to ascertain their status.
According to him, “If you test positive, it is not a death sentence. We have a medical team in our various Isolation Centres to manage patients and nurse them back to life.
“If you test negative, It is not a license, because if you expose yourself, you will contract the virus. And we are preaching again for all Abians to stop patronizing patent medicine stores. If you suspect that you have malaria and if it persists for more than 3 days, please go for the COVID-19 test.
“Don’t go in the night to patronise patent medicine dealers. What they are mixing is not a drug for COVID-19. We have people trained on how to manage COVID-19 patients.
“It is good to do the right thing, don’t apply self-medication, don’t go to any chemist or pharmacist for treatment for COVID-19. It is not the right thing to do. And if you see a patent medicine dealer, treating coronavirus patients, please feel free to report to us, we will do the right thing.
“We are saying that everybody in Abia should preach COVID-19 protocols to stop community spread of the virus” Ezem appealed.
