By Abdul Rahman Aliagan, Abuja
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State has call on the federal government to provide the state with financial assistance in its fight against the spread of COVID-19 as figures of those infected surges up. He added that the virus started few weeks ago but the rate at which is spreading in the state calls for urgent action.
“We started a few weeks ago, we were few but since it started in Kano, look at the speed with which it is going. I think we need urgent financial assistance to Kano state” Ganduje stated.
The Governor made the call on Monday while receiving the Director-General of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu who was on a tour of the state to access the level of preparedness in the fight against the disease.
Intimating the DG NCDC on the effort taken by the state so far, Gaduje said that, “we have done a lot, collected over N500m, collected items which we will very soon start distributing, constituted grassroots committees that will ensure only those households that are identified as the poorest of the poor that will be provided with the palliative, but so far no financial assistance from the federal government and we are number three in terms of the infection.
He pointed out that, Kano state needs more support at this point than Lagos state due to it’s falling level of the economy saying “we know Lagos economy today is much better than the economy of Kano, the acceptance of public enlightenment is higher in Lagos than that of Kano, we all know this fact.”
He further stated that he has since signed some adjustments in the public infectious disease regulations to allow for the proper conviction of those who might violate some basic instructions regarding curbing the spread of the disease in the state including journalists
“To take care of this unusual situation, with unusual behaviour by members of the public we decided to modify our public health infectious diseases regulations, which I have signed on the 16th of this month. That is taking care of the misdoings of those who are not ready to follow the regulations as prescribed by the Presidential Task Force.
“Gatherings, movement of people, social distancing, personal hygiene and most importantly even members of the press who give false information to confuse the members of the public, either due to ignorance or due to political differences, that regulation has taken care of that. “Ask you not to conduct Friday prayers, you conduct Friday prayers, we take you to the court.
Under the normal constitutional arrangement, there is freedom of this, there is freedom of that, but because of this peculiar situation, we established peculiar regulations which have given the government the task to do it” Ganduje declared.
In his remarks, the NCDC Director General promised that the Centre will design modalities of supporting Kano state to overcome its challenges in its effort to curb the spread of Coronavirus in the state.
He expressed satisfaction with the level of preparedness by the
Kano state government especially in the provision of equipped isolation centre
while describing the rate at which the disease is spreading as alarming. “The
rate at which the Virus is in the increase in some states in the country is
very alarming, hence collective efforts need to be put in place to ensure that
it is curbed,” he said.
