By Ikechukwu Iweajunwa
Owerri – The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has advised Imo and Abia state governments to publicise their isolation centres and contact numbers for the use of the general public in case of emergency.
The Head of Imo/Abia operations office of the agency, Mr Evans Ugoh, gave the advice shortly after his interaction with the residents of the two states and visit to disaster stakeholders, on Wednesday.
Ugoh said that the publication would also help both the emergency workers and others to be proactive, in case of any emergency.
He said that publicising the isolation centres of the two states had become necessary following insinuations that both states’ isolation centres were unknown to people.
Ugoh said that his visit to disaster stakeholders and private chats with the people in both states showed that governments of the two states had yet to disclose their isolation centers.
He said that the people also demanded to have emergency contact numbers in case of any suspicious case of the virus, urging both state governments to immediately address the issues.
He, however, expressed satisfaction with the level of compliance with the stay-at-home orders of the two states.
According to him, in time of emergency, everybody has a vital role to play, adding that if contact numbers and isolation centres are not properly publicised, it will be difficult to handle emergency cases in the two states.
He advised the general public to ensure strict observance of safety measures and personal hygiene to avoid contracting the dreaded disease.
