Also, Shuaib said the pandemic presented Nigeria the opportunity to strengthen the health sector.
He added, “This too shall come to pass and I believe we will get over this; we just need to pull in the same direction and I’m sure we will be successful. But this is really a unique opportunity in our lifetime to strengthen the health system.”
Ihekweazu noted that there was no end in sight to the “new reality”. He said, “I hope some things, like our attitude to infections prevention and control and our attitude to handwashing, will change forever.”
Lagos to assist big companies, SMEs to prevent job loss, says Sanwo-Olu
In light of the disruptions and hardship caused by the coronavirus in the business environment, Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, hinted that the state would help big companies operating in the state to prevent job loss.
He added that the state was also considering giving grants to some Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the state given the impact of COVID-19 on their activities.
Speaking as a panellist at a webinar hosted by FSDH Merchant Bank on Friday, the governor noted that the government was already compiling the data of the MSMEs to see how they could be assisted.
The webinar, titled, ‘A global pandemic: local realities and peculiarities – a view from the frontlines’, was anchored by the Chairman, FSDH Holding Company, Mr Hakeem Belo-Osagie, and the bank’s Managing Director, Mrs Hamda Ambah.
The governor said, “Lagos State has a lot of MSMEs and we realise that the sector has been extensively affected. Some of them employ three to five persons each and a lot of them need some sort of support. Part of the things we are planning to do under the Register-to-Open is to see how we can come in.
“We are compiling data and we are trying to see what kind of support we can give them. We have asked the ones currently with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (portal) not to pay the interest on their (credit) facilities with the state government. We have suspended the payment of interest.
“We want to see if we can do some grant for some of them over the next two to three months so that we can cushion the effect it has on their business. That is on one part.
“The other part is that we are asking the big companies the requirements they want from the state government, to ensure that they do not retrench their staff members. That, for us, is also important.
“They are mainly affected given that they have had to slow down their production lines. We want to ensure that they are not retrenching or shutting down their facilities. So, they have given us a list of the kind of things they want us to do for them and such things would affect our Internally Generated Revenue but we are willing to bend backwards for them and see how we can collaborate.”
Speaking on the gradual opening of the economy, Sanwo-Olu said construction industry and heavy manufacturing companies with huge staff strength would be the first areas that would need to open up.
He added that the hospitality industry, aviation industry and public transportation had been sending bills to seek government’s support and that they would follow in the second line of intervention.
…says Ebola prepared Lagos for future outbreaks
The governor also said the state was better able to handle COVID-19 given the experience it had with Ebola six years ago.
He added, “That was also epic in Lagos and it gave Lagos some understanding about how serious infectious disease could be managed. We have an Infectious Disease Hospital in Yaba and even after the Ebola case, we had some international grants and over the last two to three years, we have built what we call a biosecurity lab level four, which can match any of its kind in the world.”
Gombe searches for 10 fleeing contacts
The Chairman of the Gombe State Task force on COVID-19, Prof Idris Mohammed, has said the state is searching for 10 fleeing suspected cases.
However, he said they had traced one to Ogun, one to Nasarawa, one to Borno, two to Kano, and five to Adamawa states.
Mohammed said this during the daily briefing on activities of COVID-19 in the state.
He said 10 per cent of the 1,440 results received were positive, adding that the state had 144 cases.
He said, “There are still 10 at large, whom we are trying hard to get. We are taking every possible measure to trace these people to bring them into isolation to prevent community spread of COVID-19 in Gombe.
“We have an outstanding of 262 results to come. Out of the total 1,440 received, 10 per cent emerged positive, which is 144 positive cases. There are 49 active cases in the state, with about 92 recoveries from the virus, and three deaths. The total number of positive cases in isolation is 20 – three at the State Specialist Hospital and 17 at Kwadon Infectious Diseases Hospital.
“In addition we have a total of 219 persons at Amada quarantine centre out of which 211 are Almajirai and eight are travellers stopped in transit and isolated.”
Mohammed added that 31 of the 211 Almajirai tested negative and had been handed over to their parents.
Edo tests 1,367 residents, extends search to 542 communities
Meanwhile, the Edo State Government said it tested 1,367 residents in the state for COVID-19 and revved up Active Case Search activities in over 542 rural and urban communities across the state, adding that it was contact-tracing over 933 persons.
Speaking with journalists, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr Patrick Okundia, said the Governor Godwin Obaseki administration had ramped up measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.
“The Edo State Government has continued to step up measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic, as we are committed to protecting our people,” Okundia said.
Lagos enlists 600 for chloroquine clinical trial
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Gbenga Omotoso, on Saturday disclosed that the state had enlisted 600 patients for the planned chloroquine clinical trial.
The state discharged 45 more patients on Saturday.
Omotoso said an independent board, which would be inaugurated, would monitor the process and give necessary advice to the state government on the progress of the trial.
Omotoso said, “In summary we will be looking at about 600 patients. The trial will go on till we recruit the required number. There will be an independent Data and Safety Board. The board can advise that study be discontinued if the statistical evidence of the usefulness of a drug is overwhelming and in which case it becomes unethical to with old it from other groups.”
