By PAMELA EBOH, Awka

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State, Mr. Oseloka Obaze, has expressed concern of lifting of a 28 days lock down in the state, saying that the result of the action will have dire public health repercussions.

In a statement made available to our correspondent, Obaze observed that the state still lacks a census record of asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers to be able to come to terms with the state being free of the pandemic.

He urged the state government to draw evidence-based lessons from Kano State that went from zero to 147 cases in less than one week, and thus take extreme measures to protect its population.

The retired United Nation diplomat who also contested the 2017 governorship election in the state said: “Anambra State cannot afford to be blind to the total lack of census of asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers within the state.

“While not privy to the reasons that informed the state authorities relaxing its lockdown policy and movement around Anambra, I am extremely concerned that such a precipitate policy action will have dire public health repercussions, more so since it is not accompanied by aggressive in-state testing.

“While mindful of the deleterious economic impact of a lockdown on Anambra population and businesses, I am firmly of the view that Anambra State can ill-afford to be blind to the total lack of census of asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers within the State.

“Also, state authorities cannot ignore the attendant cumulative R-Value; that is the number of people being infected daily by such unidentified infected persons. Neither can Anambra authorities ignore the fact that Coronavirus is invisible, nimble, has trans-boundary capacity, and will spread exponentially.”

Obaze called on the state authorities to be cognizant that allowing even one or two unidentified, untested carriers unfettered access to Anambra’s general population, local communities, markets and churches, will certainly and needlessly precipitate a public health crisis in the days ahead.