Ahead of the commencement of the National Sports Festival in Edo State, the Nigerian government says it won’t stop the event due to the fear of coronavirus.
The government says people looking suspicious will not be allowed entry to the venue.
Dr Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of Health, made this declaration on Monday at a press briefing in Abuja.
Edo 2020 will be held in the state capital, Benin, from March 22 to April 1, 2020.
Ehanire said the government shall recommend to the organizers to screen everybody both participating and all the spectators, noting that at the moment, there’s no strong threat internally.
The minister said the government is not recommending ban unless the situation changes.
He added: “Those who are looking in any way suspicious will be disallowed entry straight away, so that they don’t pose any kind of risk to others until their symptoms are clear. If the Organizers do that, I think there is no good reason not to hold the festival.
“Every country takes measures that are consistent with its own situation. There are countries where the virus is spreading widely, and they have been forced to cancel various activities whether it is business, trade fair etc. We are not in that category, and we thank God”
The World Health Organization (WHO), last week, declared the deadly coronavirus a global pandemic.
Coronavirus has killed 6,000 people across the globe in less than 3 months.
