The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, has given reasons why the coronavirus [COVID-19] isolation centres were not filled to their capacities.

According to Prof. Abayomi, a reason the facilities were not filled was that some positive cases could not be found.

Abayomi, who blamed this on stigmatisation, wondered why coronavirus patients were discriminated against in society.

He compared COVID-19 to malaria, cold and flu, saying there was no reason for stigmatisation.

He said,

“So, there are people who are already practising self-isolation on their own, because we can’t find them, and the numbers they give us maybe they are false numbers. When we go to visit them in their homes, they had absconded from their residences. They are isolating themselves in different places.

“In effect, the concept of home isolation is being practised by many Nigerians even though it is not a national policy, but the people of Lagos are practising home isolation, which is one of the reasons as a government we are trying to transit to home care because it is happening anyway. So, we might as well regularise it and make it an official option for some people who are mild or asymptomatic to isolate themselves at home.

“We are spending a lot of time working around parameters of what home isolation will look like. In another week or so, we will give definitive parameters on how the state will integrate home care with our isolation strategy.”

He explained that due to the global scarcity of reagents, the government contacted local scientists to produce alternatives.

Abayomi said two of the three reagents needed for COVID-19 tests had been manufactured locally, thereby reducing the pressure to import the product.

He added that efforts were on for the local production of the third reagent.