COVID-19: FG says Southeast not testing enough

Chairman of the PTF and Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapha, has stated that the Southeast was not testing enough, a situation he said would not allow the Taskforce to understand the extent of the spread of the virus in the region to make for adequate planning and provision.

He said; “Of about 76,800 plus of the number of tests that we have conducted, when I looked at the five southeastern states, they accounted for just 1,625 as of June 1. That number is an indication of under-testing and it is a message that should go out to all the states. Do not under-test because when it will blow up on your face, you will get overwhelmed. So, begin to search now and test so that you know what eventually might come your way and you begin to prepare for it. For all the states that have not been ramping up their tests, my advice to them is, ramp up your tests. Test and test and test. If you do not find, thank God for it. But begin to prepare as if you already have so that when it eventually comes, you won’t be taken by surprise”.

Country Representative of the World Health Organization WHO, Dr Fiona Braka said the Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on the resistance of bacteria to antibiotics.

She said; “The Covid-19 pandemic has led to increased use of antibiotics which ultimately leads to higher bacterial resistance to it that will ultimately impact the burden of disease and deaths during the pandemic and beyond. New anti-microbial resistance data released by the WHO shows that globally a worrying number of bacterial infections are increasingly resistant to the medicines at hand to treat them. We also know that based on evidence, only a small proportion of Covid-19 patients need antibiotics to treat subsequent bacterial infections and the organization has released new clinical management guidance not to provide antibiotic therapy or prophylaxis to patients with mild Covid-19 or to patients with suspected or confirmed moderate Covid-19 illness unless there is a clinical indication to do so”.

Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control NCDC, Dr Chikwe Iheakwazu said Nigeria currently has reagents across its network of 30 laboratories that could be used to conduct 200, 000 Covid-19 tests.

He said at the end of the current pandemic, Nigerians will not return to a country with the kind of health security architecture that it had in the past, saying his team would have to learn from the pandemic and develop a new health security architecture for the future.

National Coordinator of the Taskforce, Dr. Sani Aliyu said evacuees would be tested before they are allowed to come into the country. On arrival, they would also be tested within 72 hours while they would bear the cost of their accommodation in either of Lagos or Abuja for the period of the test.

They would consequently be followed up for 14 days after which their international passports would be released to them. (Vanguard)