The Interview Editors
President Muhammadu Buhari has said that there is no need for Nigerians to get into a panic mode over the one case of Covid-19 confirmed so far in the country.
A part of statement issued by Mr. Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari, on Sunday read, “President Buhari urges Nigerians not to panic about the news of this first case of Covid-19 in our country, as undue alarm would do us more harm than good”.
The president, however, expressed regrets that despite the measures put in place by government at Nigeria’s borders and entry ports, one case of the infection was confirmed in Lagos last week.
The statement added, “President Muhammadu Buhari notes with sadness, the recent confirmation of a case of Covid-19 infection in Lagos, Nigeria.
“This was despite the ardent efforts of the government regarding preparedness and response measures put in place in our country’s borders and beyond.”
Buhari commended the Federal Ministry of Health and other relevant agencies “whose diligence and efficiency enabled the case to be detected, diagnosed and isolated quickly, even while swift measures were taken to identify and follow up on those with whom the index patient came into contact.”
He also commended the “responses of the Federal Ministry of Health and Governments of Lagos and Ogun States as well as other relevant agencies to the reported incident and calls for vigilance on the part of all citizens and responsible government agencies.”
He advised Nigerians to “strictly observe the advisories disseminated by the Ministry of Health, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation (WHO), on the best way to prevent infection.”
