Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State has refuted trending news alleging that there was an index case of confirmed Coronavirus in Jos North Local Government Area of the State.
The Governor debunked the rumour through the State Commissioner of Information and Communication, Hon. Dan Manjang.
Lalong said, “Since the circulation of this fake news, there has been rising concern and anxiety within and outside the state.”
According to the report, “one Hassan Sale, an influential personality from Gangare area of Jos, in Jos North LGA, an ally of Senator Bala Muhammad Governor of Bauchi State, has developed symptoms similar to those of Coronavirus (COVID-19) having been come in contact with the Governor recently”.
Manjang, however, said, “For the avoidance of doubt, the Government of Plateau State wishes to state unequivocally that this assertion is false.
“Prior to this rumour, however, the Ministry of Health, Plateau State swiftly acted by taking the specimen of Hassan Sale, and sent same for examination.
“We are happy to announce to Plateau people and indeed to the whole world that both the preliminary and confirmatory results of the specimen standing in the name of Hassan Sale are negative”, he maintained.
“In the light of this development, therefore, Government wishes to call on all and sundry to discountenance such misinformation and also state categorically that as at this moment, there is no known case of Coronavirus found in the State.
“As the Chairman of the Plateau State COVID-19 Emergency Response Committee I wish to use this opportunity to appeal to Plateau people to continue to adhere to preventive measures by washing their hands regularly, staying at home and maintaining social distance,” he added.
He urged citizens to be mindful of the kind of news they picked on the street or from the social media space.
He assured the citizens that Government was working day and night through all its response Committees to ensure the enforcement of all measures put in place to safeguard them against the disease and ensure that the State does not record any case.
