CoronaVirus: Don’t Panic – Buhari Tells Nigerians
BY EDMOND ODOK, ABUJA – Amidst the hot exchanges between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP),
President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday night urged Nigerians to remain calm in the face of first Coronavirus (COVID-19) case recorded in Lagos State.
The President, whose admonition comes on the heels fake news challenge about the identified case, also expressed sadness over the spread of the virus to Nigeria.
Speaking through his Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, the President encouraged Nigerians to focus on the preventive advisories offered by all relevant agencies, including the Federal Ministry of Health; Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (CDC); and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
According to Shehu’s statement, the President has also warned against giving in to fear mongering or scary and threatening messages flying around as such would do more harm than good to national consciousness on the global development.
“President Muhammadu Buhari notes with sadness, the recent confirmation of a case of Covid-19 infection in Lagos, Nigeria.
“This was despite the ardent efforts of the government regarding preparedness and response measures put in place in our country’s borders and beyond.
“President Buhari, however, commends the Federal Ministry of Health and other relevant agencies whose diligence and efficiency enabled the case to be detected, diagnosed and isolated quickly, even while swift measures were taken to identify and follow up on those with whom the index patient came into contact.
“The President commends the responses of the Federal Ministry of Health and Governments of Lagos and Ogun States as well as other relevant agencies to the reported incident and calls for vigilance on the part of all citizens and responsible government agencies.”
The statement further stated that; “President Buhari urges Nigerians not to panic about the news of this first case of Covid-19 in our country, as undue alarm would do us more harm than good.
“Instead, Nigerians should strictly observe the advisories disseminated by the Ministry of Health, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation (WHO), on the best way to prevent infection.”
