We must stay the course on lockdown to contain coronavirus

Citizens have struggled as we march steadily into the second week of the lockdown President Muhammadu Buhari ordered in Lagos and Ogun States as well as the FCT. State governors locked down several states across the country. It has been tough, but Nigerians are tougher, and we urge everyone, citizen and government alike, to stay the course for the envisaged benefit.

We make this call given the possibility and desirability of an extension of the period of the lockdown. We may just be ending the first half of this game. There should be no retreat nor surrender at half-time.

Nigerians are not alone in the global reaction to the dangers posed by the coronavirus. Across Africa, notably South Africa, Rwanda, Ghana and Kenya, citizens are also staying home to stay safe. The logic of the lockdown is straightforward: the virus travels only if humans travel. It cannot, therefore, reproduce if we reduce the opportunity for such spread.

Half-measures will not work in efforts to contain the coronavirus. It is a sneaky and stealthy demon. Everywhere countries relaxed for a moment, they suffered a tremendous backlash in high numbers of cases. These are notably countries with more advanced healthcare facilities.

The Federal Ministry of Health and the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control report that Nigeria has tested 5,000 persons. It has taken six weeks to get to that number. With more facilities on the ground, the number of persons tested will increase.

The Nigerian incident load as at Tuesday, April 7, 2020 was 238, up from 190 only four days earlier. Tracking shows that the number of positive cases is growing rapidly in line with the increased tests. Recoveries are also looking good, while the number of deaths remains such as not to cause a scare.

Many recent deaths attributable to the virus have come from persons who tried to game the system. In Lagos and Benin as well as Ilorin, patients died who hid their status from the hospitals. In the process of such unethical conduct, they exposed healthcare staff to the disease. It was unfair, illogical and illustrates the dangers of cutting corners.

Fellow Nigerians, we cannot afford to cut corners in this matter.  From the work of the NCDC and experience in other countries, we envisage that Nigeria may need another two to four weeks of lockdown. The containment effort demands no less to ensure efficient tracing of the about 6,000 persons the authorities fear did not comply with isolation procedures. Experts fear there may be far more following the era of community infection that we have now entered.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has hinted at the possibility of extending the lockdown. The facts of the situation bear out his concern and projection. Containment rather than treatment is the best measure for Nigeria on the coronavirus issue.

However, containment via the lockdown route is tough. It is very tough on citizens in a country with most low-income earners in the unorganised private sector. Citizens earn and live on their daily sweat. Long shutdowns are almost impossible.

Governments at all levels must then do more and better with the palliatives to enable this lockdown work. Many of the official efforts have been puny and desultory. In Lagos, angry but poor residents scorned the efforts of the Speaker of the House and turned it into a plaything. It was a matter of two wrongs remaining wrong.

We call on the federal and state governments to engage better. They must design better palliatives that take into cognisance the structure of our society. The private sector should also be fully involved.

In most states, citizens are organised along occupational lines or by communities. Anyone intent can reach Nigerians through their occupational associations or their community associations. We can organise sustainable and effective palliative measures, including soft loans that put money in their pockets. Economic activities should be scheduled to reduce comingling, maintain social distancing while enabling people to meet their needs.

We must prepare better for the extension of the lockdown. It is a marathon that Nigerians can engage if persons in authority make it a journey to which they can look forward. The prize would be worth the price everyone pays.