Eket Police Arrest On Market Traders Without A Face Mask

According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the country recorded the highest number of 1,145 new Covid-19 cases on 17 December, even as a few prominent public officials have tested positive for the disease. The total Covid-19 cases in Nigeria now stands at 76,207, while 67,110 cases have been discharged and 1,201 deaths have been recorded so far. Earlier on Thursday, the secretary to the Government of the Federation and Chairman of the Presidential Task Force, Mr. Boss Mustapha, officially declared a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.

Owing to this new development, there is palpable fear among covid-19 administrators of the Akwa Ibom State following rising cases of coronavirus infection in other states. So a new policy was passed by the executive as a measure to curtail Covid 19 without any public notice, that anybody without a face mask should be arrested. This information though has not revealed the name of the sender, has gone viral on social media and only the social media users could have had access to this regard.

The message by the anonymous reads:

"Please go about the town with your face masks as the mobile court will start operations by Wednesday 23/12/20.

There won't be any advertisements on this because it is already passed by the executive as a measure to curtail Covid 19.

Please inform your loved ones and other people so that they will not be caught unaware."

This took effect on Monday, 21st December 2020.  Dwellers of Eket, especially traders of Eket main market (Urua Nka market) fell victim to this new development for not wearing a face mask. Other victims affected were cyclists and Keke drivers as well as passengers, pedestrians, and hawkers.

Please inform your loved ones and other people so that they will not be caught unaware.

Participation of the public is an important and most effective approach for controlling the spread of coronavirus. However, considering its novel nature, it is important to create awareness among the public to be able to take timely preventive measures. On the contrary, misinformation and myths from online communities result in severe damages in the palliation of this novel disease.

The public reaction to this was described as uncalled for since it was not related to the mass through the media. Moreover, awareness levels of the participants related to COVID-19 is a means of transmission, preventive measures, symptoms, and treatment. However, reliance on a few myths and violation of certain preventive measures would be identified with the majority of the participants (more than 60%). The Ministry of Health was identified to be the most reliable source of information followed by family and friends. Essentially 15 types of information were identified to be highly relevant and important, which need to be effectively disseminated among the public through effective communication channels.

Meanwhile, Nigeria may be on the verge of a second wave of COVID-19 infections, the health minister warned on Thursday, as another official said the country expects to roll out a vaccine by April next year.

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