Imo screens 760 persons for coronavirus, confirms 135 cases, others

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has tested 760 persons for COVID-19 in Imo State of which 135 persons tested positive for the virus.

Confirming the development, the state government revealed that of the confirmed cases, 25 were on transit from other states of the federation.

Chairman of the COVID-19 Task Force on Prevention and Control, Professor Maurice Iwu, disclosed this yesterday, while answering questions on Darling FM’s People’s Voice phone-in programme.

He said of the confirmed number, six active cases were undergoing treatment at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Owerri, while 11 have been discharged, adding that a patient was safely delivered of a baby recently.

He, however, said the state recorded one death, pointing out that the victim had died before he was tested for the virus, blaming the deceased’s handlers for not reporting the case on time.

“Our target is to test 100 persons daily, but we are not there yet. We are testing the cases by contact tracing, probable testing and people who show symptoms. We have one laboratory and we are planning to have two testing laboratories soon.

“We are following every statistical model according to our prediction. There is consistency in statistical data. We are having symptomatic cases now than before. That is the graphic pattern. We have one testing laboratory and we are trying to have two more laboratories,” he stated.

According to the professor of Pharmacognosy, the Imo State Government has moved to scale up performance of the 418 primary health centres in the state, regretting that the rot in the health sector was the result of several years of neglect before Governor Hope Uzodimma assumed office on January 15, 2020.

Iwu, a former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), explained that members of the task force were on volunteer mission and were not being paid.