From Samuel .O. Asare, Ahafo Kenyasi.
Mr. Eric Addae, Former District Chief Executive(DCE), Asutifi North in Ahafo Region has called on assemblies in the country to extend and intensify the education on COVID-19 to villages if really the country wants to prevent the widespread of the disease.
In an exclusive interview with the AWAKE NEWS it looks like the assemblies in the country have centered the advocacy on the preventive measures to combat COVID-19 in so-called big towns totally neglecting people living at hinterlands/villages within the districts and such attitude is bad which ought to be stopped.
According to Mr. Addae who served as DCE from 2008 to 2016, it is heartbreaking and pathetic to know that most residents at villages do not have a fair knowledge of the measures put in place by the World Health Organization(WHO) to prevent them from been infected with the disease.
He explained that most do not have access to television and radio sets to at least listen and watch issues concerning the disease which is greatly aired by media houses in the country ever since it broke-up so how do they put the said measures in place to also fight it, he quizzed.
” Social distancing, washing hands with soap under running water, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing respective with tissue, eating well, exercising, using sanitizers among others as the measures to fight the disease are not practiced by them just like those in big towns” he said.
He is appealing to the authorities with the mandate to quickly adhere to his call by sending vans with a team of health workers to such communities in the country to educate them very well on the disease. According to him some people living in the cities especially where cases have been recorded are gradually trooping to the villages in the name of avoidance so the education must be done fast since it may be possible that an infected person from somewhere can easily infect them.
He stated that the attention now must be on those in the villages because they are completely handicapped on the nitty-gritty of the disease as compare to those in cities and towns who have access to mediums to feed them with adequate information.
He urged politicians of all parties in the country to visit residents at villages to educate them and also provide items(sanitizers, carbolic soaps, veronica buckets, tissues, and others) for their safety because as the country approaches general elections politicians will be going to all hinterlands to campaign for votes.
Mr. Eric Addae who played a major role for the people in Ahafo to have the region stated that people in villages will not forgive the country’s leaders in case they become infected on their blind side due to lack of knowledge on the disease. He tasked health workers and staff of the National Commission for Civic Education(NCCE) to embark on the said exercise as soon as possible.
On whether the government measures put in place to curb the pandemic the Former DCE commended His Excellency President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. He explained that so far all the measures initiated by the government are on course and the measures have helped the country not to record huge figures and also not spreading to other regions aside Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions. To him, for the government to close all borders and mandatory quarantining those who entered the country via air has gone a long way to limit the spread of the disease.
He mentioned all hands must be on deck to combat the dreadful disease. Trying to score political points on what is happening in Ghana where over 130 people are infected with the disease with three(3) visiting ancestors must not be entertained at all. All ideas and brains must be on board to fight the disease for the country’s good.