The fear of the emergence of the dreaded coronavirus pandemic is the beginning of wisdom. The emergence of the pandemic in Nigeria on February 20, 2020, sent jitters down the spines of the entire citizenry.
A 44-year-old Italian national (name withheld) who was a consultant to Lafarge Cement arrived in the country through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, and was driven to Ewekoro Plant. He was a suspected carrier of the deadly disease. Within a jiffy, the Italian, on the directive of Ogun State government, was transferred to the Infectious Disease Hospital, Lagos where he was tested and confirmed positive for the disease.
A heightened index of suspicion, among frontline health workers like Dr. Amarachukwu Karen Allison suspected the COVID-19 on the Italian.
Private healthcare providers are of keen note in this because they are the first port of contact for 60 per cent of the populace.
With the proactiveness of his administration and in a bid to stave off the pandemic from escalating, the governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, swiftly set up a high-level technical committee chaired by the Commissioner for Health, Dr (Miss) Tomi Coker. It has the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr Ekundayo Ayinde, Director of Public Health, Dr Festus Soyinka, Head, State Epidemiology, other directors in the ministry, in collaboration with the officials of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, World Health Organisation, United Nations Children Emergency Fund and other critical stakeholders, as members.
Aside the Italian’s case, five others, including a 62-year-old male Sagamu resident who just returned to the country on March 17, 2020, and a 30-year-old female (both Ogun East) that tested positive and were immediately transferred to the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, isolation centre, where they have been undergoing further observation. In addition, two new cases, one from Obafemi-Owode Local Government (Ogun Central) and another from Yewa-South Local Government (Ogun West), thus, bringing increasing the number from the index cases identified last February.
Out of the six cases, three of the patients have been discharged while one other is responding to treatment and on the verge of being discharged.
The government is leaving no stone unturned to nip the development in the bud. It further launched a ‘Mobile App’ christened, ‘Ogun COVID-19 Assessment’ to determine the risk of the resident’s exposure to the virus.
In a sane clime where the leadership is saddled with the responsibility of providing qualitative governance through the provision of good living conditions for its citizenry, at the formative stage of the outbreak of the disease, the government took it upon itself when it introduced various measures aimed at curtailing and also containing the spread headlong.
Seeing the welfare of the people as an epicentre of priority in decision-making, in the first instance, the governor who in collaboration with his three principal staff officials-Engr (Mrs) Noimot Salako-Oyedele (Deputy-Governor), Mr Tokunbo Talabi (Secretary to the State Government) and Alhaji Shuaib Salisu (Chief of Staff) earlier met and evaluated the level of preparedness of the state and further mapped out strategies on the next approaches to curtailing the spread of the pandemic.
Also, the principal officers considered the provision of relief packages and other economic stimulus for the citizenry.
Meanwhile, in a bid to cushion effects of the two-week lockdown, the state government has made provisions for the immediate disbursement of various food items such as 5kg of rice, 5kg of beans, 5kg of garri, salt, seasoning cubes, vegetable oil sachets and tomato puree sachets, neatly packed for distribution to about 100,000 households across the state, in the first instance. Originally, the intended target is 500,000 households and the main objective, whilst the first instance may not capture all.
But it is expected that a significant number of the residents, especially intended beneficiaries, both the poor and the vulnerable, will be covered in subsequent distribution instances. Towards ensuring that the items get to the target beneficiaries, the government set up a broad-based committee at each of the local government level, comprising critical stakeholders such as Community Development Councils/Associations, League of Imams and Alfas, Christian Association of Nigeria, market women and men association, political office holders and top civil servants from the local governments, among others, but with a caveat to political jobbers who may want to hijack the process, to steer clear of the distribution arrangements.
The government believes the essence is to ensuring fair, equitable and inclusive distribution of the relief materials in an efficient and effective manner.
However, the distribution of the stimulus package (made up of staple food and essential hygiene items) to individuals at their various homes in a bag per family has become expedient to stave off misconceptions that have been making rounds on social media network about hijacking the distribution process.
Governor Abiodun warned government officials against the diversion of the relief materials and threatened to sanction any official caught in the act.
With its enhanced preparedness, the government directed all transition chairmen across the 20 local governments in the state to identify suitable facilities such as event/social centres, school halls, community halls and others in their respective domain that could be easily prepared and developed as COVID-19 treatment facilities in the unlikely event of a surge in the coronavirus cases in the state.
Similarly, on Sunday, March 30, 2020, Abiodun met with security chiefs and the meeting dealt extensively on the measures taken towards ensuring better enforcement of the laid-down directives, especially relating to border closure.
In the spirit of magnanimity, the governor sought for an extension of the total lockdown on Lagos, Ogun and Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, as announced by the Presidency in his nationwide broadcast on Sunday, March 29, 2020, for a week (which ought to begin on Monday midnight, March 30, 2020) till 11pm on Friday, April 4, 2020, to enable the residents of the state prepare and stock their homes with foodstuffs and other basic needs.
To relax the attendant effects of the declaration of the two-week lockdown, the governor further adjusted the movement timetable thus: the first three days Saturday, April 4, total lockdown; Sunday, April 5, total lockdown; and Monday, April 6 were to allow for the complete fumigation the state, including motor parks, markets and places of worship.
Beginning from Tuesday, April 7, 2020, till Friday, April 17, 2020, there would be a free movement between 7am and 2pm every other day and a total lockdown each other day to lessen the effects of the burdens on the citizens.
The capacity of the Emergency Preparedness and Response Team, at both the state and local government levels has been strengthened with an attendant 20 medical officers of the Health, Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers and their Assistants, Health Educators, and Environmental Health Officers trained from each of the 20 local governments.
To further strengthen the team, 426 health personnel in public, private and para-military health officers were trained on the COVID-19 infection, Prevention and Control; 11 medical laboratory scientists trained on the COVID-19 sample collection; reinforcement of the borders to eliminate all possible threats through surveillance network together with Port Health Services staff at the land borders; procurement and distribution of Personal Protective Equipment for health workers and isolation centres; the assessment and evaluation of several options across the state including the building of 250-bed hospitals in Abeokuta, the state capital. There are the purpose-built 21-bed isolation and treatment centres at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, 100-bed capacity General Hospital, Iberekodo, Abeokuta and 128-bed capacity in Ikenne.
Also, available are a 30-bed facility donated by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo and another 40-bed facility by former Managing Director, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Mr Fola Adeola, both in Abeokuta, donated to the state government. In total, 300 bed facilities are currently available for isolation and treatment, among others.
Governor Dapo Abiodun, at one of the regular media briefings, stated that the facilities were not just to cope with any surge in the state, but the attendant likely overflow from the next door neighbour, like Lagos.
Ogbonnikan is a media aide to the governor of Ogun State
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