Speaker, Zamfara State House of Assembly Leads the Fight
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Speaker, Zamfara State House of Assembly Leads the Fight
| The State Government has been proactive in its approach to respond to the pandemic. 4 weeks ago, despite the ‘no recorded case’ status at the time, Zamfara had set-up a special committee under the leadership of Rt. Hon. Mu’azuMagarya, the Speaker of the Zamfara State House of Assembly (SHoA). The committee was empowered to function as a taskforce to lead and coordinate government’s efforts for the prevention and control of COVID-19 in the State. Other members of the taskforce include the Chief Whip of the SHoA, Chairman, Standing Committee on Health and Human Medicine, Hon. Commissioner for Health, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, among many other stakeholders in the health sector. The committee immediately swung into action and has been able to achieve the following: Setting up of 3 state-of-the art isolation centres in different parts of the State. The biggest was completed and fully kitted within 2 weeks in Gusau the State capital. The centres were equipped with ventilators, beds and other medical equipment. Mobilization, sensitization and outreaches in grass root communities on the disease as well as importance of | social distancing, use of facemasks, regular disinfection of surfaces, hand washing with soap and water and use of sanitizers etc. The Agency for Drug and Medical Consumable Agency; a newly established agency of the State Government began large scale manufacture of facemasks and sanitizers for distribution across the State. Establishment of a sub-committee to see to distribution of palliatives in form of cash, foodstuff and other consumables to cushion the effect of the pandemic on the socio-economic wellbeing of the people of the state especially the poor and the most vulnerable. Reaching out to the private sector, philanthropists and other stakeholders in the state for donations either in cash or in kind to support the government; this is yielding some positive results. The State recorded its index cases on the 25th of April 2020 – a male and a female, after positive test confirmations came in from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). The two cases have since been in isolation and are currently receiving treatment. | To curtail the spread of the virus, some parts of the State including Gusau the state capital were placed on lockdown for an initial 2 week period and later extended to the 24th of April. The state government is presently reviewing outcomes from the lockdown period and would make a statement as to next step of action. Also, Zamfara borders are currently closed; only essential travels, goods and services are allowed entrance into the state. There has been general positive response by the people to all the measures introduced and taken by the government to check the spread of the disease. The State being one of the most volatile points in the country as regards security challenges, the government has also taken necessary steps to ensure that lives and properties in the state are secured. Various executive sessions are presently going on; soon the SHoA will come up with strategies to assist the government to improve on its response to the pandemic. |
