COVID-19 Nigeria Update

The fight against the deadly coronavirus received a boost yesterday when eleven patients were discharged from hospital in Lagos – the epicenter of the virus in Nigeria.

iDONSABI gives you the update of happenings in the country concerning the dreaded virus that has 184 confirmed cases as the time of filing in this report.

The released patients bring to 18 the number of patients treated and discharged in Lagios and 20 in total with the other two from Ekiti and Oyo states during the week.

READ: COVID-19: Buhari Orders Prompt Payment of Salaries

Meanwhile, the number of cases increased to 184 yesterday with ten new cases; seven in Lagos and three in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The NCDC, through its verified Twitter account, gave the breakdown of the cases by states with Lagos having 92 cases,; Abuja (38); Oyo (eight); Osun (14); Ogun (four); Kaduna (four); Akwa Ibom (Five); Edo (four); Bauchi (three); Enugu and Ekiti (two cases each), while Rivers and Benue had one case, respectively.

In a related development, the daughter of President Muhammadu Buhari who has been in self-isolation after a trip to the United Kingdom has reunited with her family members.

This was confirmed by Aisha, the president’s wife, via her tweet page on Thursday evening.

“It is a thing of joy & gratitude to Almighty God to reunite with my daughter after she had been in isolation for 14 days immediately she landed in Nigeria. While I’m wishing all those infected for a speedy recovery, I pray for the end of this pandemic,” Aisha tweeted.

With five cases recorded in Akwa Ibom State, the Governor, Udom Emmanuel on Thursday evening ordered a total curfew for 14 days in the State.

The Governor made the announcement in a statewide broadcast. He said the directive became important to enable a thorough process of contact tracing to identify those who may have been exposed to the five confirmed victims.

He further revealed that the patients, who are mostly healthcare professionals who are in good health with no symptoms, have been moved to the State isolation centre for proper management.

READ: COVID-19: ‘Let’s Be Careful in Spreading Fake News’, Atiku’s Son Speaks from Hospital Bed

Meanwhile, the state government has demanded fresh tests for the confirmed cases, saying there was “a disturbing breach in the test and reporting procedure”.

Commissioner for Health, Dr Dominic Ukpong, said the Government only heard about the test results in the news.

“The Director-General of NCDC was not aware of the reported result announcement.

“All five reported positive test cases have been contacted and they have shown no COVID-19 symptoms.

“While the tests were being processed in NCDC approved test facilities, all suspected cases were held in isolation.

“Several sample batches have been previously sent for testing from Akwa Ibom State and they all returned negative.

“Owing to the irregularities observed in the testing and reporting procedure, healthcare professionals in Akwa Ibom State have called for an immediate reconfirmation test on the five reported cases.”

As part of efforts made to combat the dreaded virus, the Chairman of the Imo State Taskforce on COVID-19, Prof. Maurice Iwu revealed that the drug for the treatment will be ready as soon as the testing of the vaccine is completed.

The former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday in Owerri gave assurance where he presented a plant-based patented treatment for COVID-19 presently being tested in the United States to the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu.

“The work on the drug we are developing is still going on. We are encouraged by the result we are getting. We are getting very positive signs. Luckily the drug is a safe one. It is drug already in use. We are repurposing it for this particular purpose. So when we finished studying and testing we are doing, I think the drug will come up in line very soon.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is monitoring 40 contacts with late Imo hotelier, Mr Christogonus Osuagwu, who avoided being tested of the dreaded virus before his death.

According to reports, the 40 contacts are already in self-isolation in various destinations in the FCT.

The Ekiti State Commissioner for Health, Dr Mojisola Yaya-Kolade has said that the state had only one ventilator in its isolation centre.

Speaking as a press conference, in Ado-Ekiti, Yaya-Kolade, said the state was awaiting the result of a test conducted on a 23-year-old male patient, who manifested some symptoms of the virus while the second COVID-19 case; a 42-year-old male patient who tested positive for the virus on Wednesday, had been admitted into the isolation centre.

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