…Five Persons On Self-Isolation In Ebonyi
Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State yesterday ordered the Commissioner of Police to immediately arrest the organisers of burial ceremonies that took place in Ezza South and Ikwo Local Government Areas of the state and the policemen that supervised them.
This is as the governor disclosed that five persons are under self-observation in the state.
Umahi said that among the five are an Indian who arrived the country recently and a staff of one of the commercial banks in the country who had contact with a returnee.
He said that the other three persons came into the state from different countries that are battling the virus.
He explained that the staff of the bank visited his mother who just came back from one of the countries with the outbreak in Anambra State, noting that there was no cause for alarm as the self-isolation is precautionary.
He maintained that all the five persons were doing well, cautioning the people to maintain all the preventive measures laid out by the government.
Umahi also declared that from today, nobody would be allowed to enter or leave the state except vehicles on essential services.
According to the governor, only vehicles on special duties such as vehicles carrying foodstuff, drugs and petroleum products as well as construction materials were exempted from the directive, but as long the drivers are not carrying passengers.
He further stated that any attempt to violate the directive would be strongly resisted, adding that defaulters would be arraigned before the COVID-19 Examination Room.
He stressed that all entry and exit points, both land and sea in the state, would be barricaded.
Umahi noted that it was wrong for indigenes of the state to violate the government’s ban on any activity.
Ebonyi State government had as part of measures to curtail the spread of coronavirus closed schools, banned wedding ceremonies, burial ceremonies, night clubs, sporting activities and gathering of more than 50 persons other than in the essential services centres such as markets, rice mills, religious centres, banks, hotels.
Umahi, who stated this while briefing newsmen on government’s efforts towards tackling the dreaded virus, directed the state Commissioner of Police, Awoshola Awotinde, to ensure the arrest of all the policemen that supervised the burial ceremonies.
“Commissioner of Police, make sure that the policemen that supervised the burial are arrested and detained. Chairmen of Ezza South and Ikwo, I don’t understand how burial ceremonies will take place in your LGAs and you people are not aware. This thing should stop. We should safeguard the lives of our citizens,” he said
