As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus increases, lawmakers in the Lagos State House of Assembly have called on Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu to create more awareness on the dreaded disease to prevent its spread in the state.
The Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, who raised the matter during plenary yesterday, said that it would be hard to determine the number of people that had been infected by the virus in the state and stressed the need for the state government to do more of enlightenment.
Obasa said, “The state government has taken positive steps on the matter by banning religious gatherings and ordering the closure of public and private schools in the state but it should do more through announcement and publicity on how to prevent spread of the virus. The state Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, should speak Yoruba Language when talking about the matter so that the residents of the state will have a better understanding of what the virus is all about.
“Many people board commercial buses, money exchanges hands every now and then and this virus could be transmitted through such. Market men and women should meet regularly and discuss the matter and how to prevent its spread,” he stressed.
The lawmakers urged residents of the state to listen to announcements on issues relating to the virus and ensure compliance so that the spread of the disease can be halted.
The Speaker ordered the Clerk of the House, Mr. Azeez Sanni, to send a message to the governor on the issue as agreed upon by the lawmakers.
The Lagos State government has also said it was closing down all public and private schools in the state from Monday March 23, 2020 as part of the preventive measures against the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
The move, the government said, became necessary to prevent children and their teachers from getting more vulnerable to the pandemic.
The Commissioner for Education, Mrs Folashade Adefisayo, stressed the need for parents to ensure their children practise “social distancing” while at home, wash their hands regularly or use hand sanitizers, and observe high standards of personal hygiene.
According to her, the closure was not intended to create panic, but to arrest the spread of the disease, which has become a global threat.
Adefisayo assured that the Incident Command Centre, headed by Gov Sanwo-Olu would continue to trace all contacts of the identified cases and encourage anyone who has information about suspected cases to report to the nearest hospital or call the emergency telephone numbers: 08023169485, 08033565529, 08052817243 and 08023401214.
