The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on Coronavirus Disease said Kogi has since the outbreak of the COVID-19 conducted tests pertaining to the virus on two persons from the state.
Governor Yahaya Bello had caused a stir when he insisted on quarantine officials of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) who were in Kogi on a mission to assess the efforts the state put in place in the fight against the marauding virus.
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The four-man officials were practically chased out of Lokoja, the state capital.
The drama miffed the PTF and the members have resolved to report Bello to Buhari with whom the governor is believed to enjoy solid relationship.
The committee was of the conviction that Kogi is not COVID-19 free as being peddled by the state government, according to The Nation.
The paper cited a member of the PTF whose identity was not disclosed as saying: “The facts at our disposal have shown that Kogi is at the risk of COVID-19 because it is a melting point for inter-state travelers and it shares borders with 12 states (about one-third of the states in the Federation) which had recorded infections. The border States are Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Kwara, Niger, Anambra, Niger, Enugu, Osun, FCT, Plateau and Benue.
“Kogi has only conducted two tests despite the increasing rate of community spread. We were shocked that the state government has refused to fulfill its obligations as enshrined in the Quarantine Act 1990 CAP 384 LFN.
“Yet, the PTF has been very polite in relating with Bello. For instance, the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire on Tuesday called the governor and it was agreed that a four-man team of NCDC would be sent to the state.”
