Covid-19: Why NCDC now records low figures of confirmed cases – PTF
The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, has explained why the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is recently recording low figures of confirmed covid-19 cases.
Speaking to newsmen on Wednesday, August 5, Mustapha, who is also the Secretary to the Government of the Federation said the low figures recorded in the areas of testing and confirmed cases of COVID-19 was because of the public holiday declared to mark this year’s Eid-el-Kabir.
He also identified fatigue on the part of NCDC workers as part of the factors responsible for the low figures.
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Mustapha who had presented the interim report to President Buhari along with the members of the task force, said the President was happy with the report presented and commended members of the task force for their efforts in creating awareness on the virus.
He also informed that PTF would release fresh directives on Thursday, August 6, once the President endorses its recommendations.
He said, “As for the content of the report, it will be premature for me to talk about it because we submitted a report, we have submitted recommendations and so we have to leave for Mr President to take a decision.
According to him, “By the time I receive his approvals, non-approvals on the recommendations we have made, we will be able to speak to the Nigerian people tomorrow (Thursday),” he explained.
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“If you noticed, as we celebrated those discharges, there has also been a decrease in the testing.
“In the last couple of days, we tested just barely 2,000 across the nation, but we have a testing capacity of much more thousands than 2,000.
“Another reason is that everybody is still in Sallah mood, even the essential workers. Remember when I talked of fatigue, this is part of it.
“But I know that in the next couple of days, the testing will be rampant because people would have come out of the Sallah celebrations and come back to work.
Daily Times reports that the PTF have set up plans to avert community transmission of the disease.
”The sub nationals and local governments will begin to go into the communities to search because this is the point at which you have to go into the local communities and begin to search.
“If you don’t do that, so much is happening as a result of the community transmission that has been cascaded into the local communities that if you wait for it to present itself, it will present itself in a very explosive manner and we can get into a panic mode,” he said.
