As the deadly coronavirus disease in China is slowly spreading to other parts of the world including Africa, Sierra Leone is confronted with the realities of why they have allowed travelers in to the country when the virus broke out in Hubei last December.
Besides scientists at One Health Institute, Njala University and the University of Makeni in Sierra Leone have recently discovered a deadly fruit bats virus known as ‘Marburg.
Sierra Leone was the first to found such a closed virus closed to Ebola.
Government is preparing to prevent the spread considering the level of damages the EVD outbreak has caused to lives and property in Sierra Leone in 2014-2015. So while health authorities are targeting the Wuhan coronavirus government there should be collaborative efforts between partners with a view to put strategic measures in place to contain the ‘Margurg’.
Addicted fruits consumers must beware the virus in fruits as we are fast approaching fruits seasons.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak as a health emergency in January but health workers in Sierra Leone have continued to relax movements and restriction.
The restrictions adopted by the Chinese Government have led to the reduction of the number of cases even though the virus is spreading to other parts of the world.
Ghanaian students pursuing studies in China are reported to have called on their Government to evacuate them out of mainland China where the coronavirus deaths tools have ‘surpasses’ 1,100, even as the Chinese media says the spread is slowing down.
We stand with you the government and people of the PRC in your trying times with the deadly virus.
Back home in Sierra Leone government is challenged by lack of capacity to even detect the ‘virus’ where there are less virologists, limited or no proper public health education on prevention and spread of the Wuhan coronavirus.
The only airport continue to receive passengers from all over whereas elsewhere in the world people are rejecting cargo ships from ducking at their ports for fares of the coronavirus.
Twenty-nine passengers have recently returned home from the People’s Republic of China and are now been observed at a holding facility in the airport town of Lungi.
Two of them according to reports were detected by health workers of showing ‘extraordinary temperatures’. Sad news though for the country and hope there will be collaborative efforts towards controlling its spread.
The suspected cases are a reminder of the days of the Ebola outbreak and everybody should abide by restrictions of movements measures.
Hence president Bio must cut short his unwelcome visits to South Africa, at the AU arena in Addis and return to battle the deadly coronavirus, control its spread of ‘infections’ if any, put proper and stricter preventions and control measures in place through a joint security deployments at flashpoints, you know all hands on deck to chase the global enemy deadly Wuhan coronavirus out of Sierra Leone, like we did to the EVD.
These scares and distractions were not part of the New Direction deals but have founds themselves onboard, diverting actions of President Bio and government from implementing the traditional paopa SLPP party manifesto promised in 2018.
The control of the spread of infections of the ‘virus’ which is an already a public health emergency is slowly chasing the people of Sierra Leone.
The situation will be very much a distraction to the implementations of the free education and other New Direction flagship projects.
With public confidence in the ruling SLPP party and government dwindling by the hours as expressions of disgust sentiments of the abysmal performance of the present administration are among several worrying concerns of the president.
Don’t ask why public sectors workers salaries are being delayed. Civil servants now receive salaries eight – ten days after every month ends.
A Staff of the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation screamed on social media for delays by management to pay their January salaries. No alert up till ‘day 38.’ Salary delays are among critical topical matters on the lips of everybody, in social and traditional media about the unprecedented delays of salaries posing huge disturbances to and challenges to the SLPP led government.
The last system is reported to have run a crook regime, but never delay with payments of salaries. It in fact, created staff motivation strategies by paying performance based allowances to workers in the implementation of the free health care since 2010, which is hardly seen now, except if HoHS wants to say that it has been terminated from the sector.
All we can always suggest is that president Julius Maada Bio should firmly remained focused and deliver on the social mandate and contract he signed with the people in 2018.
He must work in accomplishments of the presidential oath he took on April 4th 2018 at his swearing in ceremony and stop tolerating the wrong thing.
President Bio should be attentive to the issues and stabilize the national economy.
This period have been described by political historians as the ‘Bio’s Momoh Era,’ and hope he is set with the apologies to the nation soonest. Unlike former president JS Momoh you have more time on your side to correct your mistakes and redirect your focus from futile activities to results oriented drives.