By Ayodele Oni
After months of rigorous campaigns and Governorship election in Ondo state, 12 fresh cases of coronavirus pandemic have been established.
Disclosing this in Akure on Wednesday, the State Acting Commissioner for Health, Dr Jibayo Adeyeye, said two of the new cases are health workers.
Ondo has been among states with the highest recorded cases of the global pandemic, recording as high as 1651 with 36 deaths so far.
Despite reported cases of fresh outbreak, the state Government has directed public and private primary and secondary schools to reopen as from Monday.
Chairman of the state inter- ministerial committee on Covid 19, Prof Adesegun Fatusi, who announced this, further directed that all schools must abide by the COVID-19 preventive guidelines released by the Committee to ensure the safety of staff and students.
Fatusi, who is also the Vice Chancellor, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, hinted that Governor Rotimi Akeredolu has also instructed the committee to conduct periodic monitoring visit to schools and any school found not to be complying with the COVID-19 guidelines should be shut.
He noted that schools reopening must adhere to the following guidelines, notices with the message, “no mask, no entry, must be boldly displayed at the entrance of the school and at strategic spots throughout the school compound; Infrared thermometer must be made available and used to assess the temperature of each staff, student, and visitors at the point of entry into the schools.
School authority must provide handwashing devices with adequate and constant source of running water and soaps and all individuals must wash their hands when entering the schools. Alternatively, hand sanitisers with alcohol content of not less than 70% may be used;
Individuals with high temperature or who show any form of illness must not be allowed into the school while seats in the classrooms and staff rooms must be separated with a minimum space of two metres.
