Opinions of Thursday, 26 March 2020

Columnist: Bright Barwuah

Coronavirus has finally arrived in Ghana

File Photo File Photo

After days, weeks, and months of not expecting Coronavirus, it’s here with us. We prayed unceasingly that this disease does not enter our dear country, but God knows best, and His(God) ways are not our ways neither His thoughts our thoughts (Isaiah 55;8).

Though we prayed that the disease does not enter Ghana, nobody would have expected that the disease will not come to Ghana due to our porous borders, and the free movement of people and goods on our neighboring countries.

With pride we always say Ghana is the best traveling destination in Africa, we are hospitable, it was obvious that the disease will be imported to Ghana as stated by the GHS.

When people were agitating for our brothers and sisters in China to be brought back home, we weren’t ready as a Nation at that time, and we are not even 60% ready now that the disease is here. Nobody should make the attempt of blaming the government, even the developed countries that have everything at their disposal is struggling to contain the virus.

We must commend the government for his swift response to this deadly disease. The only mistake the government made was not closing our borders early and allowing people from other parts of the world to come in.

This is the best we can do to look at our health care system and the resource at our disposal as a nation. The government must intensify its education on various media platforms. This is the best we can do as a developing nation to curtail this disease, even the developed nations are struggling to reduce the rate of infection and death.

America president, Mr. Trump declared March 15, 2020, as a national prayer day, there is a shortage of sanitizer in the UK, the death toll in Italy keeps increasing, and many other developed nations are struggling to stop this disease.

At this time of fear and panic, I will plead with the government not to hide any information from the general public, and people must not be over curious to know everything, but adhere to the policies and the various precaution the government has put in place.

The opposition must be responsible, not politicize anything the government does, but to criticize constructively and bring alternatives to what is already in place.

Some of the measures put in place to prevent the spread of the disease include;

*Wash your hands with soap under running water

*Cover your mouth with a tissue when coughing

*Avoid shaking of hands

*Avoid crowded areas to prevent the spread of the disease etc.

The Lord Jesus Christ is our refuge, our fortress, and our shepherd. Psalm 91:6b says you will not fear the plague that destroys at midday.

God bless our homeland Ghana

God bless us all

Bright Barwuah (Aki-Ola)

(0246285679/0547259202