11 WASSCE Candidates Tested Positive for Covid-19

Eleven students writing this year’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in Gombe State have tested positive for COVID-19.

They have been isolated at the state specialist hospital from where they would be writing their papers under strict supervision.

Affirming this yesterday, director of the state's team on COVID-19, Prof. Idris Mohammed, said out of the 11 cases, one from the Government Science Secondary School later tried negative after treatment and was re-joined with his family.

According to him, nine students from Government Girls Secondary School, Doma, a student of Government Girls Secondary School, Kumo, also tested positive.

He said out of 11,220 people tested in the state, 684 were confirmed positive out of which 594 were treated and discharged.

“Sixty-seven active cases are in isolation, while 23 deaths had been recorded,” he added.

The task force boss noted that the North East Development Commission (NEDC) had approved the establishment of molecular laboratory in the state.

Likewise talking, the Commissioner for Education, Habu Dahiru, extolled Governor Muhammad Yahaya for his proactive measures against the threat, including that the administration offered need to solidarity schools since they drew support from over the conditions of the organization

He noted that “the state also works with private schools” by ensuring that they comply with safety protocols.

Consequently, the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has said that the cases of infection among students sitting for the WASSCE calls for more vigilance in the education and other sectors.

PTF noted that the country’s testing infrastructure had been increased to take up to 15,000 tests per day, even as the country was testing between 3,000 and 6,000 daily due to people’s reluctance to submit themselves for tests.

Chairman of PTF/Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, who disclosed this at the panel’s briefing yesterday in Abuja, noted that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had issued warnings on Vaccine Nationalism and that young people were aiding the spread of the virus.

He stated: "It would verge on outrageous narrow-mindedness for our young people to accept that since they are asymptomatic transporters they can continue with life however they see fit. Being asymptomatic doesn't ensure insusceptibility for eternity." 

"The PTF is, in any case, energized by the way that dominant part of our adolescents are in the vanguard of this battle and still approach the couple of non-adjusting ones to join. This call turns out to be more basic when we understand that from an underlying 10 hotspot chambers in the nation, we moved to 16 and now 20, showing spread to different zones."