Clement Adeyi, Osogbo
Osun State Government, yesterday, allayed fears on 49 indigenes who returned from Ivory Coast to the state on Wednesday, insisting that they had all tested negative for the coronavirus pandemic and do not pose danger to the public.
Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode, who stated this in Osogbo, the state capital, said, on arrival in the country, the returnees were received by the Lagos State Government at the Nigeria-Benin border and quarantined for 14 days in the state’s facility in Badagry where they were tested for COVID-19 infection during the period.
Egbemode also clarified that those that tested positive were moved into isolation wards in Lagos while those that tested negative were cleared and those from Osun were allowed to return to their destinations in Osun.
“This is to officially allay the fears and panic in the public, following insinuations that Osun State allowed a new batch of Ivory Coast returnees into the state, after the first experience which led to a surge of confirmed cases of the COVID-19 disease in the state.
“Forty nine indigenes of Osun yesterday returned to the state. Forty-one are from Ejigbo and eight from Iwo. We have an official report showing they all have tested negative for COVID-19.
“The government assures its citizens that there is no cause for alarm or reason to panic. The returnees who were accepted into the state have been certified to join the society by the appropriate agencies of the government. Hence, they pose no risk or threat to the people of Osun,” she said.
The commissioner called on the residents to continue to maintain confidence in the administration’s commitment to protecting them with everything within its powers during the period of the coronavirus crisis.
Meanwhile, the government has announced the mandatory use of face masks in public places effective from today to curb the spread of the virus.
Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Ismail Omipidan, yesterday in Osogbo, disclosed that the decision was a part of the resolutions reached by the South West governors at its virtual meeting last week.
Oyetola noted that the South West states were the first to make wearing of masks mandatory
He said the regulation would remain in place till the states overcame the pandemic.
While warning residents against complacency, the governor urged them to cover their noses and mouths with the mask whenever they stepped out of their homes.
Oyetola reiterated that the sit-at-home order was still in place.