Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr. says health experts and leaders in the country should spare the ears of Ghanaians about the disease having reached its peak and likely to go down.
Despite the number of high cases recorded in Ghana, health experts and leaders maintain that the country has reached the peak of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) infection curve.
We've Peaked; But Not Out Of The Woods
Dr Ebenezer Badu Sarkodie, the Director of Public Health, Ghana Health Service (GHS), on Thursday explained that Ghana attained its highest confirmed cases of COVID-19 on April 25, 2020, indicating its peak period.
He, however, added that this doesn't mean the country is "out of the woods" and so entreated Ghanaians to keep following laid-down protocols to curb the pandemic.
Facts Don't Support Claims
Touching on the COVID-19 pandemic issue on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', Kwesi Pratt stated that the data and facts don't support claims of the disease likely to dwindle.
Referring the leaders to the current case count which has shot up to over 4,000, he asserted that there is no way the country is going to experience a downward trend in transmissions since the health centres are about to even undertake daily testing of the virus to find out new community infections.
Stop The Disrespect
He registered his disappointment in the country's COVID-19 response team for suggesting that the disease will slow down and admonished them to stop taking Ghanaians for a ride.
''How do you tell me the disease is slowing down? We've moved from 1 to 2, 3 and even reached 3000 and beyond, then you come to tell me the disease is going down. Do you think I have a shallow mind?''
''...you come to stand before Ghanaians telling them the disease is diminishing, what should we tell you? It means you don't respect us...if we are not doing daily testing, on what basis do you come to tell us this is going down?'' he rhetorically asked.
Listen to his submission in the video below
Mr. Pratt feared a second wave of the pandemic will be extremely dangerous than the current wave in the country.
''It is most likely that there will be a second wave and that if you follow all pandemics of this nature, there is a second wave. And that the second wave is likely to be more devastating than the first wave. In fact, when you take a critical look at the flu pandemic, the second wave killed far more people even than the first wave and so on. If you're faced with all these facts and our leaders keep deceiving us that we shouldn't panic because the disease has reached its peak and so it's coming down, coming down from where?'' he questioned.
Over 900 Cases Within 48hrs
Meanwhile, Ghana's COVID-19 cases have increased to 4012, according to the Ghana Health Service.
Per update on Friday May 8, 2020, the number of recoveries has risen to 323.
The death toll remains at 18.
This means over 900 cases have been recorded in less than 48 hours.
According to the statement on the GHS website, "over 50% of these cases were as a result of an outbreak in an industrial facility with 1,300 workers of which 533 have been confirmed positive. Over the same period, 20 more recoveries have been reported.
“Bono Region has recorded a case and thus 13 out of
16 regions have reported cases. Currently, the only regions with no confirmed cases of COVID-19 are the Savannah, Bono East and Ahafo regions."
Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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FIRST TIME TO AGREE WITH PRATT. THE POLITICIZATION OF COVID-19 IS NOT HELPFUL TO ANYONE. IT ONLY CONFUSES THE POOR ORDINARY GHANAIAN TO DISTURB THEIR PEACE TO MAKE THEIR SITUATION WORSE. NOBODY IS 100 PERCENT CERTAIN ABOUT HOW TO MANAGE COVID-19. MANY PEOPLE CONTINUE TO BE INFECTED AND DIE IN AMERICA EUROPE, NIGERIA, MOROCCO AND ALL OVER THE WORLD. GHANA IS NOT EXEMPTED. CLOSE STUDY OF THE PROGRESSION OF THE VIRUS SHOWS THAT WE ARE NOT YET AT THE PEAK OF THE PANDEMIC IN GHANA. ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO I HINTED THAT AFRICA AND SOUTH AMERICA WOULD BECOME THE NEXT TARGETS OF COVID-19. TODAY WE SEE THE RISE OF CONFIRMED CASES AND DEATH IN ALL AFRICA AND SOUTH AMERICA. THE DEATH RATE IS TERRIBLE IN BRAZIL. NIGERIA HAD VERY FEW CASES AT THE BEGINNING. THEY WERE NOT TESTING AS MUCH AS THEY SHOULD AND STILL THEY ARE NOT. THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT LOW AMOUNT OF TESTING MAKES A COUNTRY LOOKS GOOD, NEVERTHELESS LOW AMOUNT OF TESTING DOES NOT STOP THE RATE OF DEATH IN THAT COUNTRY. THUS THE RATE OF DEATH EXPOSES THE EXACT SITUATION ON THE GROUND. GHANA INFECTED CASES MAY HIT ABOUT 5000 BY THE MIDDLE OF MAY. IF THAT HAPPENS THE FIGURE COULD REACH 10,000 BY THE END OF MAY BEFORE THE RATE OF INFECTION FLATTENS AND BEGINS TO GO DOWN. WE HAVE NOT YET SEEN THE WORST. WE ARE NOT BETTER THAN EUROPE, AMERICA SOUTH AFRICA, EGYPT BRAZIL AND THE OTHER PLACES. THIS IS A GLOBAL PROBLEM. IT IS NOT GHANA PROBLEM AND THE OPPOSITION SHOULD STOP LOCALIZING IT TO TREAT IT AS GHANA PROBLEM. IT ONLY SHOWS OF THEIR IGNORANCE ABOUT GLOBAL AND INTERNATIONAL ISSUES. GHANA MAY ACHIEVE GREAT SUCCESS IN THIS FIGHT BUT WE CANNOT WIN ALONE. WE MAY ERADICATE COVID-19 IN GHANA BUT IF WE STILL HAVE IT IN NIGERIA, TOGO, BURKINA, IVORY COAST OR AMERICA AND EUROPE WE SHALL STILL NOT BE FREE. TO THE PEOPLE OF GHANA, ALL PROTOCOLS SET IN PLACE MUST BE OBSERVED SERIOUSLY. THE FRUITLESS CRITICISM CANNOT MAKE THE SITUATION BETTER. AS ONE EXPERTS SAID WE DO NOT YET HAVE ANY PROVEN MEDICATION OR FORMULA AS CURE TO THE PANDEMIC. THE ONLY WAY TO MANAGE IT IS TO APPLY COMMON SENSE. THE NOISYY POLITICIANS SHOULD SPARE US THE UNNECESSARYY COMMENTARY. ANYBODY CAN SIT AT THE FENCE AND SHOUT, BUT IT TAKES A DISCIPLINE TEAM TO WIN THE MATCH.
Kwesi, you don't know it all so just ***barred word*** and let us have some peace in this country. if you are confused, go to them and let them explain it to you, don't talk by heart
So in my household I have a way of calculating our debt to income ratio. I say to my wife and children our balance book is clean and they believed me. Suddenly there was some unforeseen circumstances and I had to go to my banker(IMF) for loan, my bank say to qualify, you should include all your expenditure on the loan application including those you personally foot and not disclose to members of your house because in our determination we include everything from the household income/spending. By including my side chick expenditure, now my house members know our books were not as cleaned and balanced as I claimed. Question: was I lying to my household about the true financial standing of the house or not? No big big grammar, break it down simply not IMF/BOG English please
Massa stop the fOOlery. Is it everything that you know. We are discussing epidemiology of which you have no cue so just stop displaying your ignorance. If you do not have capacity to comprehend the subject you do insult the GHS. No one insulting you.
Say NO to election 2020, human life is more precious than elections. If over 550 out of 1,300 people have contracted the disease from one factory, imagine what is going to happen when political parties start with their rented rallies where they bus people from towns and villages to converge at a venue. #Supreme Court SAVE innocent Ghanaians now!!