Obaseki: Second Wave of COVID-19 Has Hit Edo State, Releases New Guidelines

-Says 32 New Cases Recorded
…Shuts Schools Till January 18
-Wearing Facemasks Mandatory In Public Places, He Declares
…Warns Traders Not To Sell To Buyers Without It

By Daniel Dafe
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, has said that the second wave of COVID-19 that has been ravaging the world, has now hit the state.

In an address on Wednesday morning, Obaseki disclosed that so far, a total of 32 active cases with 4 new cases in the last 24 hours have been.recorded.

He said: “Experts have warned that from experience, the second wave in any epidemic is usually larger than the first. This is why as a government we are very concerned.”

He added: “From the experience, which we gained during the last outbreak of COVID-19, we now have in place a robust disease surveillance system in the state with well-trained contact tracers, who can undertake active case searches; we have 4 PCR molecular laboratories that can undertake large numbers of tests with procedures to promptly obtain results from the laboratories.”

Continuing, the governor said: “Our case management system is intact to provide care for confirmed cases. We also have 4 well-equipped, functional isolation centers spread across the state.

“Even though we have created the capacity to respond to the new outbreak of COVID-19, our strategy to cope with the second wave is to decrease the incidence of the disease and the mortality from the disease.”

He thus warned that residents in the state “should avoid crowded places, closed places and close contact with other people.”

Furthermore, he noted “that during the yuletide period, there are normally a lot of interactions with family and friends,” but warned that this old practice would be sacrificed in order to be alive to enjoy many more xmas and year end activities in future.

He opined that “consequently, government has decided to reintroduce the measures in Edo State to limit the spread of the second wave of COVID-19, particularly during this holiday period.”

According to him, wearing of facemask is now mandatory in public places.

Adding: “There should be drastic reduction in number of people attending religious, political and social gatherings in one place.”

He also advised people not to patronize or enter any public facility without hand wash station, provided with soap and running water, as he called on people in the state to make use of hand sanitisers and observe adequate hand hygiene.

Obaseki also ordered all schools in the state to remain shut until January 18, 2021.

In line with the Federal Government directive, he said that the state government has adjusted the curfew time to begin from 12 mid-night to 4 am daily, beginning from December 23, 2020, except on December 31st, 2020.

While.commending religious leaders for their support and assistance during the first wave of the pandemic and encouragjng them to actively and continuously disseminate information on adhering to safety guidelines to halt the spread of the disease, he also praised several corporate institutions particularly banks, saying that they have so far done well in enforcing social distancing and other safety measures.

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He, however encouraged them to intensify efforts this time around to ensure that they curb the spread of this deadly virus, as he urged market unions and trade associations to rally their members to adhere to public health and safety guidelines outlined to halt the spread of the disease.

Obaseki warned traders not to sell items to anyone not wearing facemasks.