The Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has condemned the continued obstruction of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) by the Kogi and Cross River States governments.
The body described the development as unfortunate and urged President Muhammadu Buhari to quickly intervene.
Dr Francis Faduyile, NMA President, in a statement on Friday, lamented that the states were toying with the coronavirus crisis.
He stated that the obstruction was contrary to the NCDC Act (2018) that empowered it to, “prevent, detect, monitor and control,” activities and programs for national response against infectious diseases.
Faduyile added that the act also empowered the agency and other public health emergencies “to lead, develop and coordinate such activities”.
NMA warned that the country risks an explosive community transmission if the pandemic was not well-managed by the federal and state governments.
The NMA president advocated the revamping of abandoned General Hospitals and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) to mitigate the challenges with home treatment and acute shortage of bed spaces.
“We still maintain that isolation and treatment centers should stand-alone to avoid the non-social spread of this infection especially in settings of poor hygiene practices,” Faduyile said.
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