Five die from COVID-19 in Osun

Abimbola Abatta, Osogbo

Five persons have reportedly died from the deadly Coronavirus pandemic in Osun State, increasing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths to 32 since March 2020 when the index case was recorded.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) published on Tuesday that Osun’s five fatalities accounted for 33.3 percent of the 15 deaths recorded in Nigeria in the last 24 hours.

Reacting to the report, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Rafiu Isamotu, said the report of increased fatalities is a warning sign to citizens not to treat COVID-19 with kid gloves.

In his words, “Osun was one of the least hit by the infection during the first wave. This is despite the State’s timely and effective interception of the Ivory Coast returnees, which we took responsibility for.

“Today, the story is different because of the increasing number of confirmed cases that we are recording daily. Osun now sits in the 17th place on the scale of impact of the pandemic on states of the nation.

“The sting of the infection can be avoided if we all take personal responsibilities. The government has shown responsibility by increasing testing capacity across the state and intensifying sensitization.

“The onus is on us to cooperate with the government in the battle against this dangerous public health concern.”