Panic In Kano As 80% Of Coronavirus Samples Test Positive

TRACKING___Members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 sent to Kano State have expressed concern about the high rate of community transmission in the state.

The presidential team said 80 per cent of every 100 samples taken from the state for testing always came out positive.

As of March, the state had no case of COVID-19, but on April 11, a former ambassador, who attended a Jumat service while awaiting his coronavius test result, was diagnosed with the virus.

As of 5.51pm on Sunday, there were 313 COVID-19 cases in the state, which was second to Lagos State that had 1,084, the highest in the country.

Kano has high rate of community transmission – Head of FG’s team
The Head of the team sent to Kano State by the President, Dr Nasiru Gwarzo, said the state had a high rate of community transmission of COVID-19.

Gwarzo told the BBC Hausa service in an interview that the high rate of transmission, as shown by increased testing, was evident when compared to the former situation in the state.

According to him, there is an urgent need for the people of Kano to take the deadly disease seriously as out of every 100 samples samples taken for testing, 80 per cent always came out positive.

He said, “This is a serious situation which needs collective effort to address as the case of pandemic has gone beyond people’s imagination as it has gone to community transmission.

“What we are afraid of in this pandemic is what is happening. The pandemic has left the first stage of entering the country. It has left the second stage and has entered the third stage of community spread. This is not news that will be palatable to the public but like a Hausa proverb says, ‘on the day you are to take a bath, you cannot hide your navel’.”