Yemisi Izuora
In its determined effort to stop the spread of the novel corona virus in the State, the Oyo State Task Force on COVID-19 has activated emergency Operating Centres (EOCs) in the State.
The Task Force headed by the State governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde also on Sunday named Dr. Taiwo Ladipo of the Ministry of Health as the Incident Manager in charge of the Operating Centres.
In addition, a five-member committee of experts has been approved to act as sub-committee for the EOCs.
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, confirmed the above as some of the decisions reached at the second meeting of the COVID-19 Task Force held at the Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, on Sunday.
The statement also quoted the State’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Bashir Bello, as affirming the release of two dedicated lines to coordinate COVID-19 related emergencies.
The numbers are: 08095394000 and 08095863000.
The statement also confirmed that Dr. Bello, in a brief submitted to the Task Force indicated that the EOCs started 24-hour operations on Sunday, March 22, 2020.
According to Dr. Bello, the State Surveillance Team is directly following up the suspected corona virus case in the state.
The suspect was said to have recently arrived Oluyole, Ibadan, from the United States of America.
“It must be noted that she arrived in Nigeria on the 8th of March and today 22nd of March is her 14th day post arrival, which has thus completed the isolation period,” the statement read.
The statement re-emphasised the need for the people of Oyo State to observe standard procedures of engagement at this time by maintaining social distance, regular hand washing and use of sanitisers.
The statement further read: “We also encourage Nigerians returning from COVID-19 affected countries to maintain the globally accepted protocol by self-isolating for 14 days and reporting any untoward conditions to the State medical personnel.
“Let us also use this opportunity to reaffirm that all schools are to remain closed till after the Easter holidays and until the State re-evaluates the situation on ground.”