The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chike Ihekweazu, has said that the country cannot afford any spike in Covid-19 cases.
The DG said that pre- and post-travel tests and self-isolation are now extremely important to avert any sudden rise in COVID-19 cases.
India, a country previously perceived to be in the clear concerning severe caseloads, has come down under the pressure of an exponential increase in the number of cases per day. Now, recent reports have suggested that the populous nation, a country of over 1 billion persons, is now shorthanded on vaccines as well.
Ihekweazu said on Monday at the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) briefing on COVID-19 pandemic in Abuja that the country cannot afford to come under the same circumstances as a place like India again.
Ihekweazu said: “We cannot afford another large outbreak in Nigeria, and we must do all we can to prevent this.
“Please, let’s take responsibility. Adhere to all public health and social measures in place to protect us from COVID-19 and other infectious disease outbreak.”
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“I am appealing to all Nigerians to adhere strictly to the measures put in place to protect us and our country.
“We have to do this to avoid sudden drastic measures that can also impact on our economy.
“We now have several tools in place that were not here at the beginning of the pandemic.
“The Antigen-based Rapid Diagnostic Tests can be useful in large workplaces, schools, camps and hospitals to rapidly test and reduce the risk of spread,” he said.
Ihekweazu also the state governments to reinvigorate their responses, while heads of various institutions should introduce the measure as part of their health safety plans.
“Please scale up risk communications, keep sample collection sites open and available, ensure the laboratories are testing and contact tracing is happening.
The DG urged media houses and personalities to continue sharing a message of caution concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that they should continue to utilize their platform for spreading the word concerning prevention.
Ihekweazu also alluded that although difficult decisions need to be made, Nigerians should continue to exercise caution to avert any tough situation.
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