Abdullahi Ganduje, Governor of Kano State, has urged his fellow state governors in the northern region of the country to stop politicising the evacuation of almajirai across the different states of the region due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
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Governor Ganduje made the appeal in a statement issued by Abba Anwar, his Chief Press Secretary, on Sunday.
Some governors in the region, particularly Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State, have lamented the situation of almajirai evacuees who tested positive for COVID-19 upon their return from Kano State to their states of origin.
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But in his response, Governor Ganduje insisted that the evacuation exercise was agreed by all governors in the region under the Northern Governors Forum as part of measures to stem the transmission of the diseases.
He stated that his colleagues should, therefore, not use the evacuation process by hammering Kano State – considered the epicentre of COVID-19 in northern Nigeria – just to score cheap publicity points.
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The statement read: “To put record straight on the movement of Almajiri across states of the federation and how Kano embarks on the exercise.
“We agreed at the Northern Governors Forum that all Almajiris moved to their states of origin. That is why we are sending, in good faith and procedures, all Almajiris that are not from Kano state to their respective states of origin.
“The exercise was not political and should not be politicized.
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“The way we are sending back Almajiris to their states of origin, we are also receiving Almajiris from other states who are Kano indigenes. But the fact that we are not making noise about it does not mean they are all healthy without COVID-19 infections.”
According to the governor, Kano State has also received a number of almajirai from other northern states who tested positive for COVID-19 but decided not to publicise it.
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He added that what the children need is quality medical care and not to be used as pawns in settling political issues.
“Let’s make it categorically clear that, some of the Almajiris brought to Kano during the exercise, are also COVID-19 positive, but we are not making politics out of it. Because we all believe that what they need most now, is not noise making or publicity. What they need at this critical point in time is caregiving.
“People should also understand that these children were not infected in the process of transporting them to their respective states. So noise making is not fit as a way forward. All we are doing is simply to comply with the Northern Governors’ Forum decision that all Almajiris in our states should be taken back to their respective states, simple,” the statement read.
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