The Trades Union Congress, TUC, has asked on all workers within parts of Greater Accra and Kumasi who are not exempted from the restriction of movement, to obey the rules set out by government in order to avoid the further spread of the novel Coronavirus.
This follows the announcement by President Akufo-Addo on Friday, 27th March, 2020, on a partial lock-down of parts of Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Kumasi, which have been identified as the epicenters of the novel coronavirus in Ghana.
In a statement signed by the TUC Secretary General, Dr. Yaw Baah, the Union urged workers to be responsible and observe all the enhanced hygiene procedures.
“We would like to appeal to all workers in Greater Accra and Kumasi, who are not exempted from the restriction of movement, to stay at home with their families. Remember that it is your civic duty to stay at home to protect yourself and others from the infection. Do not go out unless you need to attend to something really urgent,” the statement noted.
While commending all health professionals and front-line workers in the fight against the spread of the virus, the Union called on them to remember to protect themselves as well.
“As workers who are at the front-line of this war against COVID-19, you are heroes and heroines of this war. We are counting on you to take care of us. You too have the right to be protected so you should ensure that you have all the personal protective equipment (PPE) you need to perform your duties,” the statement added.
Ghana records 152 cases
Currently, Ghana’s case count has risen to 152 cases with 5 deaths and 2 recoveries. This follows the confirmation of 11 new cases by the Ghana Health Service on Sunday, March 29, 2020.
Ten of the new cases were among persons who were under mandatory quarantine in Tamale under the direction of the Regional Security Committee of the Northern Region.
Globally, the number of COVID-19 cases is almost 600,000 with over 27,000 deaths.
Click here for the full statement:
Partial lockdown of Ghana
The partial lock-down which takes effect at 1:00am on Monday for two weeks, is expected to end on March 30, 2020.
The decision, according to the President, is to help curb the spread of COVID-19 which has led to four deaths and infected some 137 people.
In a nationwide address, the President stated that, “Prevailing circumstances mean that stricter measures have to be put in place to contain and halt the spread of the virus within our country, especially in Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Kumasi, which have been identified by the Ghana Health Service as the ‘hotspots’ of the infections,” he said.
“…effective 1 am on Monday, 30th March, some forty-eight hours from now, I have imposed, pursuant to the powers granted the President of the Republic, under the Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1012), restrictions on movement of persons in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA, which includes Awutu Senya East), and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and contiguous districts, for a period of two (2) weeks, subject to review. It will give us the opportunity to try to halt the spread of the virus, and scale-up effectively contact tracing of persons who have come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and, if necessary, quarantine and isolate them for treatment, should they prove to have the virus,” he added
