Youths of Ilutitun community in Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State on Thursday, vowed to resist plan by the state government to site an isolation centre in area.
The Coordinator of Ilutitun Youth Development Forum, IYDF, Akintade Omokunle, said that the plan by government to convert the Mega School in the community to an isolation centre for coronavirus patients will not be tolerated.
According to Omokunle in a statement, he said the move of the youths was in tandem with the resolution of the traditional council of chiefs in the community.
The statement read, “on behalf of Ilutitun Youth, I write to notify both indigenes and settlers of the town that Mega School has been set aside for Coronavirus Isolation Centre.
“I and my executives have decided to go with the decision of the Traditional Council led by the Kabiesi and ably supported by the Ijama Council and the Ilutitun Development Union to not allow the establishment of this structure bearing the fact that no person has been tested positive of Covid -19 in the state. We reject this outrightly and wholly.”
However, reacting to the community’s rejection for the establishment of an isolation centre at Ilutitun, the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Wahab Adegbenro described the action as unfortunate.
The Commissioner, who said that though the state was yet to record any case of the virus, stated that the move was to enable the state prepare for any eventuality by creating isolation centres in each of the three senatorial districts of the state.
Dr. Adegbenro further explained that the choice of Ilutitun was due to the fact the Mega School has for a while being under lock and key as he stressed the option of Okitipupa Mega School was jettison because of the usage of the facility by Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology.
“We planned to convert the mega school which has been under lock and key all these while. Our plan is to have the isolation center in the town in case we have a case in that area and there would be no need of bringing the person to Akure.
“That is why we want to have the center in that community but but since the people of the community say no to it , we have taken it away and we are now thinking of where to locate it.”
