Coronavirus in Ghana: Go and hug victims if you don’t believe – Oppong Nkrumah to doubters

The Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, is daring anyone who does not believe there has been confirmed cases of coronavirus in Ghana to come for them to be taken to the victims for hugs and see if they will survive.

Ghana’s first two cases of the coronavirus disease involving two foreign nationals were announced by the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, on Thursday night.

But moments after the announcement, some people suspected it was a calculated attempt by the ruling government to spend the $100 million earmarked for the fight against the disease.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had on Wednesday announced the amount as set aside for the fight and just a day after the announcement, Ghana recorded two cases.

Speaking in an interview with Onua FM’s Yen Sempa on Friday, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah said, in Twi, “if you don’t believe we have two people with the disease, come, we shall take you to where they have been quarantined for you to hug them and see if you will survive”.

He added: “We should not joke with this in Ghana. If you don’t believe, come and we shall take you to the quarantined people. If we politicize this, it will not save anyone.”

The Information Minister explained that “they have been in the country for the past week and one is a Ghanaian living and working in Europe who came to Ghana”.

Mr. Oppong Nkrumah noted “they came through the airport” but he refused to give details when asked which flight or seats they were on.

He explained that “we took all these details and we have seen those they have been in contact with that is what it called contact tracing”.

Suspension of international flights

The Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi Constituency in the Eastern Region said “the flights are gone but we know those in the flights. We are working on International flights and by three hours today [Friday], government will make announcements on decisions taken on international flights to and from Ghana”.

By Kweku Antwi-Otoo

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ABOUT: Nana Kwesi Coomson

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An Entrepreneur, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Communications Executive and Philanthropist. Editor-in-Chief of www.233times.com. A Senior Journalist with Ghanaian Chronicle Newspaper. An alumnus of Adisadel College where he read General Arts. His first degree is in Bachelor of Arts - Political Science (major) and History (minor) from the University of Ghana. He holds MSc in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Energy with Public Relations (PR) from the Robert Gordon University in the United Kingdom. He is a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow who studied at Clark Atlanta University in USA on the Business and Entrepreneurship track.

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