Determined to change the poor attitude to COVID-19 safety protocols, Governor Abdullahi Ganduje has inaugurated 2,000 special marshals to enforce compliance in Kano State.
The marshals, who include the police, civil defence, Hisbah and men of Environmental Vanguard, are to strictly enforce implementation of Section 5 of Quarantine Regulations.
President Muhammadu Buhari, last week, signed the COVID-19 Health Protection Regulations 2021 under Quarantine Laws of the constitution.
Ganduje had signed similar regulations in April 2020 to compel compliance to the protocols.
Inaugurating the new enforcement agents, the governor, who reaffirmed the second wave of the pandemic in Kano, insisted that government would no longer tolerate lawlessness in the state.
Though the governor allayed fears of another lockdown in Kano, he vowed to resist all acts of deviance to the protocols that might aggravate the situation.
“No doubt, COVID-19 is back in Kano and we must be back with all necessary measures to curtail the spread. Although we do not intend to lock down the state again because of the devastating socio-economic impact, we must put adequate measures in place to ensure compliance to protocols to save lives.
“To enforce compliance, the government is inaugurating COVID-19 Marshals to carry out special duties. The marshals will carry out sensitisation on the danger involved in COVID-19 and the need to adopt safety measures. In the case of disobedience, the marshals that will be supported by the police will arrest and charge offenders to our special mobile court,” he said.
Meanwhile, the deadly pandemic has killed 23 persons between December 2020 and January 2021 in Kano, bringing total number of mortality to 77.
Besides, confirmed cases in Kano have risen to 1,157 between November 2020 and January 2021, putting the total confirmed cases from inception to 2,952.
Technical coordinator, Kano State Emergency Response on COVID-19, Dr. Tijjani Husaini, made the disclosure yesterday during the launch of COVID-19 Marshals at Government House, Kano.
