PREMIUM TIMES

The Cross River State government has said it would quarantine for 14 days the staff of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) expected in the state to begin the collection of samples.

Betta Edu, the commissioner for Health and chairman of the state COVID-19 taskforce team, said this on Wednesday in Calabar.

She said the state was more interested in the prevention of the virus than its management.

“As a state, we have shut down borders and all land entrances to prevent the spread of the virus. It is not compulsory that all states will be affected,” she said.

“The state government is going all it can to ensure that it remains COVID-19 free. The no mask no movement policy has helped a lot in achieving the fight against the pandemic.”

Cross River is among the three states in the country yet to record a case of coronavirus, as of April 28. The other two are Kogi and Yobe states.

The commissioner warned those trespassing through various routes into the state to desist from the act, adding that “the virus does not move, people move the virus.”

She said they were interested in testing any suspected case of COVID-19 that meets the NCDC requirements.

She further said that health surveillance staff at the border areas have been advised to focus more on persons with symptoms.

“We don’t need a ventilator at this moment, what we want is test kit to help get more samples for laboratory analysis.

She appealed to the Federal Government to assist it with funds and test kits in containing the Coronavirus spread.

She also appealed to the federal government to set up a vaccine producing factory in the state.

Ms Edu said the NCDC had sent only 50 test kits which were not enough for the state with over 4.5million population.

According to her, with the release of funds and more test kits, samples will be taken across the state to Irrua in Benin for laboratory testing.

She called on the federal government to send more security personnel to police the borders against Cameroonian coming into the state.