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Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The leadership of the National Assembly has lauded the efforts of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in tackling the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan, and the speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave the commendation at a meeting with the PTF led by the Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, on Thursday, April 9th.
Lawan said so far the PTF has done very well in coordinating the fight against the viral pandemic and reaching out to the various states, as well as updating Nigerians on the national response strategy on a daily basis.
The senate president called for the harmonisation of the funds contributed by organisations and individuals to combat COVID-19 in order to ensure accountability.
Mustapha, briefing the NASS leadership on the work of the PTF, said the virus has placed a considerable and significant strain on global health care systems and economies.
According to him, “given the relentless exponential growth rate witnessed in other countries, the spread of the virus in the continent, and in particular in Nigeria, should be expected.”
“The nation is at war against a very dangerous, unseen and ubiquitous enemy and all hands must be on deck to successfully prosecute the war.”
The SGF urged the National Assembly to develop a legislative framework to reform the county’s healthcare system as well as prepare the country for future pandemics.
He explained that the PTF will not be directly involved in the collection and disbursement of the cash donations for COVID-19.
According to him, “the Accountant General of the Federation has already published the account details for collection through five commercial banks and also provided the modalities for its utilisation. All the main COVID-19 accounts shall be domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria. However, all non-cash donations shall be duly received by the PTF, acknowledged, documented and appropriately deployed.”
