The first high profile case of COVID-19 broke yesterday as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar announced that his son had tested positive for the pandemic. Atiku’s announcement came through his Twitter and Facebook platforms last night, several hours after the federal government had said eight new cases of COVID-19 in Lagos, Oyo and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), had brought the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 30, spread over four states and the FCT.
Although the former vice president did not divulge the identity of the son, he said he had duly informed the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and that the son was moved to Gwagwalada Specialist Teaching Hospital in Abuja for treatment and management. He said: “My son has tested positive to coronavirus. @NCDCGov has been duly informed, and he has been moved to Gwagwalada Specialist Teaching Hospital in Abuja for treatment and management. I will appreciate it if you have him in your prayers. Stay safe, coronavirus is real.”
A close family source told Huhuonline.com that the son, who returned from Switzerland recently, is responding to treatment and is in a stable condition. The global death toll from the pandemic has since jumped to 13,799, with 322,278 persons confirmed to be positive in 189 countries across six continents, compelling the World Health Organisation (WHO) to warn Nigeria and other countries affected that lockdown approach alone can’t defeat the growing spread of the disease.
Following the increasing cases in the country, the federal government and some state governments had shut down schools and international airports, advising citizens to observe social distancing by avoiding the gathering of more than 20 people. Despite the restrictions, many churches across the country held services yesterday, increasing the possibilities of an escalation of the pandemic in the country. Concerned by the disobedience to the restrictions, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, yesterday ordered Zonal Inspectors-General of Police and State Police Commands Commissioners to enforce social restriction orders imposed by government at all levels.
He also directed the Zonal AIGs and Command CPs to guard against cases of unnecessary arrests and detention of suspects, telling citizens to stay away from police stations. Announcing the new cases on its Twitter handle yesterday, @NCDCgov, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said six of them were from Lagos, while one each is from Oyo State and the FCT. It said: “The three cases from Lagos had a travel history to high-risk countries in the last seven days. They have all been placed under isolation and treatment. “Breaking down these figures means Lagos has recorded 19 cases, Abuja four, Ogun two, Oyo one and Ekiti one. “Of the total 27 cases, two have been discharged. We are working closely with the affected states, including the FCT identify and follow up with contacts. If you have returned to Nigeria from any country in the last 14 days, please stay in self-isolation.”
In a separate update, NCDC confirmed three more cases of COVID-19 in Lagos, bringing the number of recorded cases in the state as at yesterday to six, and that of the country to 30. Stating this on its Twitter handle Sunday, @NCDCgov, the centre said two of the latest three new cases were returning travelers while one was a contact of a confirmed case. It said: “As at 05:28 pm on March 22, there are 30 confirmed cases of #COVID19 in Nigeria. Two have been discharged with no deaths.”
The Lagos State Government through the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, gave further details on the first three new cases from the state, noting that one of the three cases was a 51-year-old Briton, who arrived in Nigeria on March 8 via BA75 flight. He said: “The second patient is a Nigerian on connecting flight KL0582 London Amsterdam/KL0587 Amsterdam to Lagos. He arrived in Nigeria on March 14. “The third case is a 65-year-old citizen of the United States of America who arrived in Lagos about six weeks ago.”
In a related development, the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, who doubles as the Chairman, State COVID-19 Task Force said the case from the state had been placed under isolation and treatment.
He said: “The COVID-19 confirmation test for the suspected case at Bodija has come back positive. The result was released at 17:35 PM of March 21, 2020. Oyo State Public Health Officials are collaborating with the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan’s team on the case.
“A follow up on the Ekiti COVID-19 case revealed that the person was picked up directly from Lagos Airport to a private apartment in Ona Ara Local Government Area. The Health Authorities have contacted the family concerned and the community has been alerted for intensified contact tracing and self-isolation of identified close contacts.
“The information given that he stayed in some hotels in Ibadan has been found to be false.”
He also stated that another returnee from Texas, USA, has also been identified at Oluyole Local Government Area, adding that she has been kept in self-isolation with close monitoring by the state’s epidemiological team. Makinde urged all recent returnees to identify themselves to health ministry officials and self-isolate for 14 days.
There are 30 confirmed cases of #COVID19 in Nigeria. 2 have been discharged with no deaths, NCDC said. So far, 22 of the 30 cases were confirmed in Lagos State. Four cases were confirmed in Abuja, one case in Ekiti, two in Ogun State and one in Oyo State. Two of the cases have been declared negative and discharged in Lagos State after treatment at government facility in Yaba, Lagos. Most of the cases were imported into the country by either returning Nigerians or foreigners.
Nigeria has since placed travel restriction on 15 countries with high prevalence of the global pandemic.
Nigeria has also suspended its visa on arrival policy and shut down all airports in the country to international flights. The federal and state governments have closed schools and tertiary institutions in the country to prevent further spread of the virus. The government has also banned all social and religious gatherings in the country.
