Amidst rumours of his evacuation to a foreign hospital and his alleged testing positive to COVID-19, President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday received a briefing from the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, on the latest developments over the outbreak of the Coronavirus, pandemic.
The minister, who was at the official residence of the president, updated him on the pandemic and other health issues in the country.
It was observed that the President led by example as he, Ehanire and other dignitaries at the briefing observed the principle of social distancing being advocated by the World Health Organisation, WHO, as part of precautions against the spread of COVID-19 across the world.
Fielding questions from State House Correspondent of the Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, after the closed-door meeting with the President, Ehanire said he was summoned to the Villa to give additional explanations on some health matters in the country.
The minister, who was accompanied by some officials of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, said the President expressed satisfaction with the activities of his ministry and that of the NCDC so far.
As at Saturday, March 28, Nigeria so far has 81 confirmed cases of COVID-19, while 46 other African countries have 3,778 confirmed cases of the pandemic, according to statistics from the World Health Organisation, WHO, Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville, Congo.
Meanwhile, the 43 ministers in Buhari’s cabinet on Saturday, in a statement by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced the donation of 50 per cent of their March salaries to support government’s efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.
