Akwa Ibom State Government has given a nod to the state Covid-19 Incident Management Committee to continue in its aggressive community testing for coronavirus cases and immediate isolation and treatment of persons who have tested positive for the virus.
The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Comrade Ini Ememobong, made this known while fielding questions on News Day on ARISE TV in Uyo.
The commissioner stated that the state Governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, had directed that aggressive community testing for Covid-19 be carried out in the state as part of his administration’s efforts to curb further spread of the virus.
He stated that apart from the regular testing of those showing symptoms and those identified by contact tracing, it was necessary for the state government to intensify efforts in carrying out aggressive community testing in order to win the fight against the health pandemic.
The state Spokesman said that the approach was one of the adopted measures by the state government to further ensure that students in exit classes currently writing their mandatory examinations as well as those writing the ongoing Senior Schools Certificate Examinations, SSCE were given full protection from contracting the virus.
The commissioner further added that prior to the commencement of the examination, the state government had procured a large number of facemasks for distribution to secondary schools in the state which he said had long been given out to the students for their personal use.
He hinted that although a lot of students had been tested, only one sample was confirmed positive. He explained that the affected student was currently writing the examination from one of the isolation centres in the state with additional measures put in place to ensure that the integrity of the examination was not compromised.
Comrade Ememobong disclosed that the state IMC was currently visiting various communities in the state to carry out random testing to forestall community spread, especially among the people dwelling in the hinterlands.
Addressing questions raised on the amount so far expended on the fight against Covid-19 by the state government, Ememobong stated that Governor Emmanuel was a leader who upholds the principles of accountability and probity in all his financial dealings and would at the right time disclose a comprehensive expenditure details to the public. He allayed the fear that financial details would be withheld from the public domain.
He assured that the state government was working assiduously at flattening the coronavirus curve in the state by increasing contact tracing and arresting community spread of the disease. He added that no stone would be left unturned in making sure that the state wins the war against the Covid-19 pandemic.
