Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has assured that donations received by his government for the fight against Covid-19 would be deposited in a dedicated account.
So far, traditional rulers in the state have donated N2.5m towards containing the disease in the State, while Multiverse Mining Company has also donated N5 million.
Governor Sule further assured that the donations would be judiciously used to assist citizens of the state.
The funds, he said, would be used to assist residents undergo coronavirus test, treatment in case of any confirmed case as well as provide palliatives for people who may face challenges as a result of measures taken by government to combat the spread of the disease.
Sule who stated this during a meeting with the Council of Chiefs at Government House, Lafia on Thursday, disclosed that the state was taking proactive measures against the spread of the COVID-19 bearing in mind that Nasarawa shares boundaries with the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kaduna and Benue states, which already have confirmed cases of the virus.
The Governor informed the traditional rulers who were at the Government House to donate money towards the fight against Coronavirus that, even though the state was yet to record a single case, Nasarawa can not afford to pretend as if the pandemic does not exist.
He disclosed that, as part of the proactive steps being taken by his administration aimed at protecting the people of the state, a facility earlier built to house persons displaced by flood, located in Shabu will be temporally converted to a 300-bed isolation centre.
Sule further revealed that already some private sector individuals have decided to assist the state towards setting up a standard isolation centre.
The Governor equally informed the royal fathers of the ongoing effort to complete the Diagnostic Infectious Diseases Centre, located in the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital (DASH).
The facility was initiated by the previous government of Senator Umaru Tanko Al-Makura.
He explained that: “My administration is working hard to ensure completion of the project, especially that it has already secured goodwill from institutions and private sector individuals who expressed willingness to assist the state to finish work at the centre.
“So far, Senator Al-makura during his administration administration has expended close to N500m on the construction of the building housing the centre, but it will require additional N2bn to complete and fully equip the centre”, Sule said.
Commenting on the total locked down imposed on Karu Local Government Area, the Governor commended the Etsu Karu, HRH Pharmacist Luka Panya Baba, Chairman of the council, Hon. Samuel Akala, as well as other stakeholders, for ensuring full compliance with the locked down.
He, however, noted that security has to be beefed up in the area to ensure that residents comply with the social distancing regulation.
Speaking earlier, Emir of Nasarawa, HRH Alhaji Ibrahim Usman Jibril, who spoke on behalf of the traditional rulers, described the situation of the state as precarious considering that Abuja, Kaduna and Benue states have all recorded positive cases of coronavirus.
The royal father said members of the council thought it wise to give their contribution to support the effort of government to fight the pandemic.
