Abdulrazaq Mungadi, Gombe
Following the fallout of protests in two COVID-19 isolation facilities in Gombe, the State Maternal and Newborn Child Health (MNCH) coalition has urged the state government to invest more in public sensitisation and awareness across the State’s local government and remote areas.
In an exclusive interview with Daily Sun, chairman of the coalition Malam Alhassan Yahya disclosed that the coalition was not surprised at the development, urging the government to do all that is necessary.
“Because you cannot keep people who have tested positive without engaging them in certain activities such as exercise, training as well as adequate power supply and as healthy feeding.”
“I know that there are certain types of coronaviruses that don’t need drugs but even at that you must use your experts to be educating, sensitising and keeping them busy while they await tests that may prove their readiness to go home,” Alhassan advised.
He remarked that asymptomatic patients are the cause of unease among residents and community members, pointing the close interaction that was reported between the COVID-19 victims and residents of the Kwadon community.
“While calling on the government to embark on massive awareness so as to keep public informed and aware of happenings around COVID-19 and how they can help in preventing the community [from being infected], I would also as for a matter of urgency call on the governor to quickly consider locking down Kwadon community in Yamaltu Deba LGA of the state where the protest took place to prevent the spread and outbreak of the pandemic,” the MNCH chairman said.
Tested and confirmed Coronavirus patients complaining about neglect in Gombe. They left the isolation centre, blocked the highway in protest and mingled with the local people who came out chanting that corona is a lie. Simply unimaginable! pic.twitter.com/ZwkPUqdvfE
— Mazi Gburugburu (@Mazigburugburu1) May 5, 2020
Alhassan, who rated the Gombe State task-force on COVID-19 zero on the area of sensitisation and awareness creation, enjoined the State government to find a solution to the protest which he called an embarrassment to the state.
“I would commend the task force in the area of sending samples for testing and confirmation, but in other areas, their performance is zero and that calls for the governor to do needful and strengthen the preventive mechanism of the State because that is the sure way of winning the fight not just against COVID-19 but every other communicable decease.”
The task force on COVID-19 had, following Tuesday’s protests, set up a mini committee to look into and take care of the welfare of the patients in the State.
Addressing reporters in the resumed daily briefings, the Chairman of the task force on COVID-19, Professor Idris Mohammed, said members of the task force were doing everything possible to ensure that the needs of those in isolation were taken care of.
Prof Aliyu Usman El-Nafaty, who is also a member of the task force, explained measures put in place to ensure the adequate provision of patients’ needs, both in isolation and under quarantine.
“We drew up a menu for their feeding. We drew up a one-week menu of a balanced diet, even taking consideration of those who are fasting,” he said while adding that the Tuesday’s protest was sheer mischief.
“It is not because they are not being fed or given meals accordingly. As doctors, we take cognizance of their needs in terms of a balanced diet, and we made sure that what you have in the morning it will be different from what you take in the afternoon or what you take in the evening.”
Professor El-Nafaty further explained that the patients were duly and properly counselled on why they would be kept in confinement, even though they were not showing any sign of sickness; namely, to protect others in society from being infected.
“Before they were taken to the isolation centres, all of them had been counselled properly and appropriately as to what to expect, why they were being there and why they need to be there, in their own interest, their families, and the community at large. And they understood it and we took them there,” Professor El-Nafaty said.
He added that the task force was in the process of providing them with television sets to keep them entertained after they had been taken through basic safety measures.