By Chuks Oyema-Aziken
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha has assured of government preparedness to
combat the deadly Coronavirus in the advent of an outbreak in Nigeria.
This is just as he called for non-stigmatization of infected persons.
Mustapha gave this assurance on Wednesday in Abuja at a one-day Sensitization Programme on the Spread of Coronavirus and Lassa fever, cautioned that rumors about the spread of the disease should be avoided.
“We have been informed by the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control that they have set up their response centers and that they are mounting surveillance. Medical personnel have also been put on standby to attend to any emerging issues.
“What we are doing today is the responsibility of management to create awareness within our workforce. The issue of stigmatization should be reduced to the bearest minimum. No fiction, no rumors, science and facts are what we want to deal with,” he added.
Speaking through the Permanent Secretary, General Services Office, Mr. Olusegun Adekunle, the SGF urged the staff of the OSGF to take the precautionary measures seriously to remain safe.
Earlier in the sensitization workshop, Head, Response Division in the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, Dr. Olaolu Aderinola, noted that the virus which has so far spread across 23 countries is yet to enter Nigeria.
He urged Nigerians not to stigmatize Chinese residents in the country.
He also warned against misinformation on the virus especially on the social media, adding that the NCDC is coordinating a Coronavirus Preparedness Group to respond to any possible outbreak.
