COVID-19: Edo Begins Enforcement Of No Vaccine Card, No Access To Government Facilities

By Akinwale Kasali

Beginning September 15th, 2021, Governor Godwin Obaseki’s Government in Edo State begins the enforcement of its no vaccination card, no entry into any State Government owned facilities.

The Edo State Government said it is a means of curbing the spread of the  Coronavirus pandemic in the state.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr Osamwonyi Irowa, who disclosed this at the daily press briefing on the virus, said that anybody who wanted access into any state government offices, must have his or her card to show the enforcers.

“If you have to enter the state Secretariat, you must have your vaccination card, we are going to implement this in all the key areas to ensure that we don’t have persons being infected because the other person is being difficult.

“The first phase is targeted at State Government facilities. As for tomorrow the first set of enforcement areas are Government locations across the State.

“Those that cannot provide their COVID-19 vaccination card may have to excuse us and be working from home pending when a decision will be reached. As a state, we are doing everything possible to make sure people don’t get infected.

“We are appealing to our people to get vaccinated because that is the most suitable way of preventing the severity of the disease when you have it and also avoiding death. The Enforcement Team will commence work tomorrow as a way to help us reduce the number of cases and deaths we are recording daily, he said.

In his contribution, the Head of the COVID-19 Enforcement Team, Yusuf Haruna, said that the State Government had trained 20 special teams that would be spread across the State to commence enforcement of no vaccination no entry into government owned facilities.

“As we all know, Government has the responsibility of protecting lives and properties of its citizens, in view of this, we have trained 20 special teams that will be spread across the 18 Local Government Areas of the state.

“They will commence this enforcement from the 15th of September, 2021, what we expect our people to do is that while going to work they should go with their vaccination cards, government is not forcing anybody but government has the responsibility to tell you not to spread the virus.

“What we are going to do tomorrow is to grant those who have the authentic vaccination card access to their working places and those without can go back and work from home and Government will know how to deal with all of that.

“These 20 special teams will be saddled with the responsibility of scanning and confirming the authenticity of these vaccination cards and also diligently asking those who don’t have it to go and work from home, this is the directive of the state Government and this will be enforced to the letter, he said.

Earlier, the Head of the State’s Coronavirus Case Management, Dr Ebomwonyi Osagie, said that the State had recorded a total of three deaths within the last 24 hours.

“So far, a total of 467 samples were collected, with a total of 1,034 confirmed cases, 638 active cases and 31 new cases, he said.

It would be recalled that A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has restrained the Edo State Government and its Governor from forcing residents of the state to take COVID-19 vaccine.

Obaseki has remained defiant, saying that Edo residents would be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination before they would be allowed into public places like Churches, Mosques, and Malls.

The Court in a suit, dated August 30, 2021, ordered the Governor, the Edo State Government, and three other respondents, “to maintain status quo pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice, for the enforcement of the applicant’s fundamental human rights and for the leave of court to serve the respondents by publishing the Court’s processes.

The suit was filed on behalf of the applicant, by Echezona Etiaba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, according to the report.