The Anambra State government has banned activities at nightclubs throughout the state for one month, with effect from Wednesday, December 23, 2020. The ban is in response to reports of increasing incidences of COVID-19 in various parts of the world, including the United Kingdom where a new strain of coronavirus, more infectious and more deadly, has been reported. Huge spikes in numbers of COVID-19 in some states in Nigeria have also been reported.
A statement by C. Don Adinuba, the Commissioner for Information & Public Enlightenment said that “Our people are returning from these places with high incidences of COVID-19 to celebrate the Christmas and New Year season with their families, friends, kindred, villages and towns and contribute to numerous development projects and programmes. The Government is, therefore, obliged to act swiftly. We must do everything to avoid a situation where a lockdown will be inevitable”.
The commissioner further stated that the suspension of activities at nightclubs is the first in a series of measures which the Anambra State government will have to take to protect the people from the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic which seems to be in its second wave in Nigeria.
“People come into close contact with each other at nightclubs, making the nightclubs a veritable super spreader for COVID-19. Our people are, once again, reminded of the imperative to observe a social or physical distance of six metres, including during religious services. They have to wear a mask which covers their nostrils and mouth anytime they are out of their houses because the nose and mouth are two orifices through which coronavirus enters our system. The need to wash our hands regularly with running water and soap for at least twenty seconds cannot be overemphasized. The same goes for the need to apply sanitisers on our hands when they are not visibly dirty, otherwise soap will be better to use to wash our hands,” the statement said.
Adding that the government and people of Anambra State have been exemplary so far in the fight against COVID-19, the commissioner said we need to display greater dedication in the campaign against the second wave of this highly contagious disease.
“Any person with an unusual headache and fever or loses the sense of taste or the sense of smell is advised to proceed immediately to the local government headquarters where trained officers will collect his or her samples for a COVID-19 test because fever and headache are not always symptoms of malaria or any other common illness. Even any person who does not have any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19 can go for a test. Both testing for the pandemic and the treatment are free in Anambra State. Early detection often results in successful management of the case.
“Our people have to bear in mind that any person diagnosed with the disease need not be treated in any of our protective care centres, otherwise known as isolation centres. Such a person can be treated at home. The Anambra State Ministry of Health has not lost any of the COVID-19 patients treated at home.
“As millions of our people return from different parts of Nigeria and foreign countries in a period of sharply increased cases of COVID-19, all of us have a duty to go the extra mile to make Anambra State remain the safest place in West Africa in every sense. Let us attend only functions which are absolutely necessary this Christmas and New Year season. Otherwise, let us stay at home and stay safe”.