The Director, Centre for Infectious Diseases Research, Bayero University, Kano, Professor Isa Abubakar, has expressed worry over the decline in the number of samples being supplied to the state epidemiology team for COVID-19 tests.
He spoke in Kano while receiving a GeneXPert modular machine, certified by the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Control (NCDC) for COVID-19 and other diseases test, donated to the centre by philanthropists.
The professor of infections and epidemiology insisted that the present decline in the number of active cases in the state is not a sign of relief as the number of COVID-19 tests being conducted in the state had equally dropped in the recent time.
‘Honestly, as an epidemiologist, I will only be happy if the number of tests we are conducting is larger than what we are seeing and we are recording more negatives but for now, it is premature to celebrate.
‘I can say we are doing better than when we started but we have not reached the promised land yet because right now, the number of samples being supplied from the state epidemiology team is on the decline and that is not the good way to go if we really need to fight the pandemic.
‘We need to up our game to ramp up tests in Kano as well as other neighbouring states that we are serving so that we know the actual picture of the pandemic in our community so that we take all necessary measures to isolate the positive cases for treatment and also search for more cases and intervention,’ Professor Abubakar explained.
Speaking on the new machines, Professor Abubakar applauded the donor for the humanitarian gesture which he said will upscale testing and enhance quality service delivery.
Kano State has consistently recorded a low number of infections of the disease in the last few days, a situation which has been a source of relief and joy among governance actors and residents of the state.
