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The Federal Government of Nigeria has launched a nationwide manhunt for 4,370 “persons of interest” as part of measures to combat the spread of the dreaded coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The move is designed to track down all persons suspected to have had contact with index cases of the virus. Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who disclosed this at a media briefing in Abuja, yesterday, urged Nigerians who know the whereabouts of such persons to report to the authorities for necessary actions.
Mohammed lamented that the government has not been getting the kind of cooperation it desired from Nigerians at the moment. He said that many Nigerians were still busy engaging in “meaningless criticisms” instead of complying with the stipulated directives to keep people safe.
According to him, government was still finding it difficult to trace these persons of interest because of lack of cooperation from members of the public.
“We have 4,370 people of interest whom we are tracing. We urge those who have had contact with suspected cases to immediately report to the authorities. We urge Nigerians to support the authorities in this regard. We are on the verge of reaching the level of community spread.
We must stop this immediately or we will record exponential cases in the days ahead.
“Some Nigerians who flew into the country from overseas filled wrong addresses and phone numbers in their forms, making it difficult to trace them when the need arises. Some Nigerians defied orders to stay away from large gatherings while some religious leaders willfully flouted the directives to ensure social distancing.
“I don’t intend to sound apocalyptic, but the truth is that time is running out.
