The government of Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola of Osun State has said 49 of its indigenes who returned to the state yesterday from Ivory Coast pose no risk whatsoever to the public as regards coronavirus pandemic.
Governor Oyetola’s administration made this known in a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode.
Osun State is one of the worst hit states in the country with 20 confirmed cases of coronavirus.
Interestingly, a good number of cases recorded in Osun were imported from the West African country of Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).
Hence the reported panic among residents as news filtered into town that another batch of returnees have arrived from Ivory Coast.
The statement reads…
This is to officially ALLAY the fears and panic in the public informed by insinuations that the State Government of Osun 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.
The State Government wishes to set the record straight, thus:
49 indigenes of Osun yesterday returned to the state. 41 are from Ejigbo and 8 from Iwo. We have an official report showing they all have tested negative for COVID-19.
These 49 indigenes of Osun, on arrival from Ivory Coast, were graciously received by the Lagos State Government at the Nigeria-Benin border, were quarantined for 14-days in Lagos State’s facility in Badagry where they were tested for COVID-19 infection during the period. Those who tested positive to the disease were moved into Isolation Wards in Lagos, while those who tested negative to the infection were cleared and those from Osun were allowed to return to State of Osun, their destination.
The State Government of Osun hereby 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.
The State Government urges its citizens continue to trust that this administration is committed to protecting the people of Osun with everything within its powers.
Signed:
Funke Egbemode Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation
