Ras Mubarak Demands Information On Whether President Will Be Quarantined After His European Tour

The MP for Kumbungu Hon Ras Mubarak has demanded information on whether President Akufo- Addo upon his return from a European tour, will be quarantined following cases of the spread of the Coronavirus disease in some European countries.

Hon Ras Mubarak asked the question in Parliament after the Majority Leader Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu had presented to Members Business statement of Parliament for next week.

According to the Kumbungu MP, the President of Mongolia has been quarantined for 14 days after a trip outside the country.

Hon Mubarak also wanted to know arrangements being made to protect members of Parliament and the Speaker Rt Hon Prof Michael Aaron Oquaye from the disease as they also travel outside the country to perform national assignments.

Responding to the question by Hon Ras Mubarak, the Majority Leader Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu said Hon Ras Mubarak might have asked the question on a lighter note, however, the Majority Leader jokingly said Ras Mubarak rather needs to be quarantined as he has been coughing often these days.

He added that any arrangements to protect people against the virus must be for all Ghanaians and not only Members of Parliament and the Speaker.

Sudan, Angola, Tanzania, Ghana, and Kenya were identified as having a moderate importation risk, but with varying levels of health system preparedness to handle an outbreak.

Many of these countries are among the 13 African nations with a high volume of travel to and from China, which the World Health Organisation (WHO) has prioritized to receive support for added measures like improved airport screening.

The World Health Organisation has identified Ghana and 12 other African countries as high-risk countries for the novel coronavirus.

Ghana, Algeria, Angola, Ivory Coast, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia were identified by WHO as African nations with direct links or a high volume of travel to China.

The statement said: “WHO has identified 13 top priority countries (Algeria, Angola, Cote d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) which either have direct links or a high volume of travel to China.