WorldStage Newsonline– The Edo Government has said that it has not authorised the reopening of schools in the state for the third term academic activities.
The state Commissioner for Education, Mr Jimoh Ijegbai in a statement said government did not authorise the reopening of schools whether public or private, including certificate classes, and warned that it would sanction any school that flouted its directive on this.
He said: “It has come to the attention of the Edo State Government that some schools in the state have reopened and some are planning to reopen for the third term academic session.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, the state government has not authorised schools whether public or private, even the certificate classes to reopen under the present circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A date of resumption will be communicated to all stakeholders after modalities have been put in place to ensure the safety of our children and wards.”
The commissioner urged school proprietors in the state to be guided by the state government’s directive on this.
NO REOPENING OF SCHOOLS YET
In a similar development, Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo said on Friday in Benin that 80 more COVID-19 patients had recovered and discharged to reunite with their families after testing negative to the virus.
The governor said in a statement that the death toll in the state had, however, risen to 43 with the elderly accounting for a large number of the fatalities.
He therefore urged residents to observe precautionary measures to stay safe and healthy as well as protect the aged.
Obaseki said: “We have discharged 80 more COVID-19 patients from our isolation centres. The number of discharges now stands at 498.
“We lost one more person to the virus, bringing the number of fatalities to 43. Stay safe and protect our aged parents who are most endangered.”
Meanwhile, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr Patrick Okundia, has said the state recorded a total of 1,203 confirmed cases and 6,046 suspected cases.
He added that 2,532 others were exited, including 2,185 line-listed contacts and 347 persons-of-interest (POI) who had completed the compulsory 14-day follow-up and tested negative.
Okundia gave the breakdown of confirmed cases as Oredo (391), Esan West (117), Egor (223), OviaNorth East (86), Ikpoba-Okha (160), Uhunmwode (14), Etsako Central (2) and Esan South East (7).
Others included Akoko-Edo (1), Esan Central (107),Ovia South West (19), Owan East (1), Esan North East (43), Etsako West (20),Etsako East (9),Orhionmwon (2),Owan West (1).
The commissioner, who assured residents that the state government would continue to intensify efforts to contain the pandemic, said the state had tested over 6,371 residents.
He added that the committee was contact-tracing 2,794 others and had visited over 1,035 rural and urban communities for Active Case Search (ACS) activities.
“While the state government intensifies efforts to protect Edo people from this deadly disease, we urge all citizens to stay at home and observe all precautionary measures against the spread of the infectious disease.
“These include regular handwashing with soap under running water and the use of alcohol-based hand sanitisers. Cover your mouth and nose properly when sneezing and/or coughing,” he said.
