Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
A member of the House of Representatives representing Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of Osun State, Wole Oke, has raised the alarm over the spread of the novel coronavirus in the state.
Oke, in a statement on Sunday, said the 22 cases recorded in the state within few days was frightening and called for collective efforts to halt the spread of the virus in Osun State and the country at large.
The lawmaker, who is also the chairman, House Committee on Public Accounts, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to, as a matter of urgency, give a grant of N5 billion to the Osun State government to strengthen the fight against coronavirus in the state.
He called on Nigerians to put their religion, politics and ethnicity aside and unite to confront COVID-19 in the interest of the country.
According to him, “I am impressed and encouraged with the way and manner the Mr President and the National Assembly are managing the situation so far. But more still needs to be done like in the case of Osun State; it is frightening and alarming with 22 reported cases down already as of today; we don’t know what is in offing.
“I think that at this stage, Mr President who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should wade into the crisis at hand in Osun before it explodes and turns to a national embarrassment and calamity; mind you the dreaded coronavirus is no respecter of age, position, class or country.
“Giving out like say a sum of ₦5 billion to the state in the first instance will go along way to address the situation on the ground. The government will be able to procure the needed medical equipment and drugs, crate as many as possible isolation centres in all the local governments in the state and for other logistics.
“Osun State government is not viable enough to be able to shoulder this enormous responsibility which was not in the budget; even the viable states like Lagos, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa-Ibom Kano, Sokoto and others can not do it alone not talk of Osun State, an agrarian and civil service state.”
Oke commended the efforts of the state governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, towards containing the spread of the virus in the state and called on community and religious leaders to educate their people on the need to obey directives from government and relevant agencies.