Some residents of Bauchi State, on Tuesday, expressed shock over the news of Gov. Bala Mohammad testing positive to coronavirus.
Mohammed isolated himself on March 23, after he made contact with Mohammed Atiku, son to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Who tested positive to COVID-19.
Malam Muktar Gidado, the governor’s Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media, confirmed the governor tested positive on Tuesday in a statement.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that people gathered in groups discussing the incident, most of them wearing ‘long faces’.
Few people, who reluctantly spoke with NAN on their feelings, on condition of anonymity, said the news was devastating and shocking.
They said it should now become clear to those in doubt that the threat of COVID-19 is no longer a case of ‘tales by the moonlight’ but ‘reality’.
“We pray for his recovery and that of others that tested positive; as our governor, he is doing very well and God will protect him,” said some of the respondents.
They applauded the measures taken by the governor that culminated into discovering that he had the virus.
According to them, only God knows the number of people that would have been affected through contacts with him.
Some of them who spoke called for thorough scrutiny of the aides of the governor to ascertain their status.
In his reaction, Mr Abdullahi Yelwa, a lecturer at the Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic, Bauchi, said it was worrisome to have the number person in the state affected.
According to him, when the head is sick, the entire body is sick because we need the governor to be on his feet to rescue others.
He urged people of the state to take all precautionary measures and advice from health experts so as to contain the virus.
Also, another resident of Bauchi, Mr Bunmi Adetoye, said the fear of the virus among the citizens of the state had increased.
