Confirmed cases grow to 184
Lagos discharges 11 patients
The minister of health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire has said that the government had successfully located 4, 260 persons representing 71 per cent of the 6,000 contacts of the positive COVID-19 cases it was tracing.
Ehanire who disclosed this at a press conference by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja yesterday however said the number of cases might rise in the coming days.
He said the projection on the possible rise cases was based on the improvement in tracing of contacts and testing capacity of the laboratories.
“As contact tracing and testing is being ramped up, more and more contacts will be traced and number of confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 is expected to rise. Initially, with the tracing of over 71 per cent of the close to 6,000 contacts and improved turn-around time for testing, more positive cases are expected,” he said.
The minister, however, added that there were potent worry about persons, especially those returning through the land borders, who ran the high risk if they were with an infected person for a long time like transit in a crowded bus or car.
He said it is important that people restrain themselves to travels that are very essential either by air or by land, national or international.
“In this regard, all Nigerians are advised to stay where they are except if they are returning from a previously arranged journey or business trip,” he said.
Ehanire said as part of efforts to bring more stakeholders on board, he met with the leadership of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).
He said the doctors had expressed their readiness to contribute their quota in the containment of COVID-19.
He said government had asked the NMA to plead with their members who wish to serve as volunteers to assist in tackling the disease.
Meanwhile, Nigeria yesterday recorded 10 new cases of COVID 19 bringing the total confirmed cases to 184.
Of the new cases, seven are in Lagos and three in Federal Capital Territory, FCT Abuja.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) which announced the new cases on its twitter handle @NCDCgov said “As at 08:00 pm 2nd April there are 184 confirmed cases of COVID19 reported in Nigeria. 20 discharged and two deaths.”
Of the 184 cases, 162 are currently being managed, 20 have been discharged while two have died.
Breakdown of the figures showed that Lagos currently has 98 cases; FCT, 38; Osun, 14; Oyo, eight; Akwa Ibom, five; Ogun, Edo and Kaduna four each; Bauchi, three; Enugu and Ekiti, two each; Rivers and Benue, one case apiece.
Meanwhile, the governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced that 11 more COVID-19 patients had been discharged after their viral loads returned negative.
Sanwo-Olu who broke the news on his Twitter handle, @jidesanwoolu, said: “I am happy to break to you, my good people of Lagos, the news of the release today of 11 more patients from our facility in Yaba.
“They have fully recovered and have tested negative for COVID-19 and have been allowed to return home to their families.”
He said the patients had fully recovered and had returned home to their families.
He said the patients included two females and nine males, adding that their results came out negative in two rounds of test.
“I want to use this opportunity to, once again, thank our frontline health workers and other professionals for their service.
“Let me reiterate that this is not the time to relax, but to maintain our vigilance because of the community infection that we are beginning to see,” he added.
