The Nigerian
Government has confirmed the second death from coronavirus (COVID-19) in the
country.
The Minister of Health,
Dr Osagie Ehanire, announced this on Monday during the Presidential Task Force
Briefing on COVID-19 in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
He said, “Till date,
three persons have been discharged after successful treatment. But sadly,
another fatality was recorded over the weekend in the person of a patient who
had severe underlying illnesses.
“We have intensified
contact tracing and our strategy remains to promptly detect cases, isolate
them, and follow up with their contacts and also isolate and treat, in order to
reduce the spread of the infection.”
“As of today, the
30th of March, 2020, we have recorded 111 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in
Nigeria of which 68 are in Lagos, 21 in the FCT, seven in Oyo, three in Ogun,
two in Bauchi, two in Edo, two in Osun,
two in Enugu, and one each in Benue, Ekiti, Kaduna and Rivers States,” Ehanire
added.
He stressed that
Nigeria has 111 confirmed cases of COVID-19, saying a majority of them were
persons who came in from overseas.
According to the
health minister, the highest number of confirmed cases are in Lagos and Abuja
because they serve as the major gateways to the country.
He also informed the
gathering that all retired but able-bodied staff of the Nigeria Centre for
Disease Control and the Federal Ministry of Health were being recalled.
Ehanire warned
Nigerians to protect the elderly among them, as well as those having underlying
health issues as they were the most vulnerable.
In his opening
remarks, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss
Mustapha, informed the audience that the briefing would be a daily event.
He explained that
the purpose was to give an update and minimise the incidence of fake news in
the country.
Mustapha stressed
that the briefing would be the only approved briefing of the task force,
although appearances on TV by relevant members would be allowed.
He announced that
President Muhammadu Buhari has constituted a committee headed by the Vice
President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, to care for the economic challenges that
the situation may bring for the time being.
The SGF also
clarified the controversy triggered by the restriction of movement in Lagos and
Ogun States, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He allayed the fear
of Nigerians, saying workers in the financial institutions were not included in
the stay-at-home order declared by the President in his Sunday broadcast to the
nation.
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