The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has dispelled claim by Cross River Governor, Ben Ayade that social distancing is of no use in the fight against the coronavirus.
Ayade had in public bad mouthed social distancing saying it could not impede human-to- human transmission but went to say that the only inhibition apart from personal hygiene is wearing face mask.
In a veiled reference to the governor’s claim, the Director-General of the NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, at the ninth joint national briefing of the Presidential Taskforce Force (PTF) on COVID-19, said: “It is better to keep physical distance of two metres, as this plays a critical role in reducing the spread considering that the country is among the most densely populated.
“Even when we announce our decision on mask, the masks are not going to solve the problem. So, there have been some messages around the country seeming to imply that wearing a mask makes all the other measures no longer necessary. This is simply not the case.
“If we do offer an advisory around masks, it will be in addition to everything else; it will not be in place of it. So, we have to understand the reasons for these measures.”
