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Against the backdrop of the rise in the number of cases of people testing positive in the country, COVID-19 has been considered a new threat to Nigerian economic recovery.
Regional president of IndustriAll and general secretary of the National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers (NUTGTWN), Issa Aremu, in his presentation at a workshop organised by the Labour Writers Association of Nigeria (LAWAN) last week in Ibadan, advised government against panic economic measures that would deepen poverty as a result of the shortfall of oil revenue due to coronavirus.
He also warned that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should resist the temptation to devalue the naira as it has done over the years commendably by the governor, Godwin Emefiele.
“Coronavirus shows that we must deepen diversification of the economy, produce what we consume and consume what we produce. CBN must, therefore, sustain its policy of not financing 43 items Nigeria can produce at home,” he said.
Saluting the Federal Governments and states for the preventive measures taken so far, Aremu said labour must support the governments to prevent the spread of the virus.
He also added that employers must invest in workers’ awareness on prevention and control of the disease.
He reiterated the importance of labour, capital and employers coming together to halt the spread of the virus world wide.
The labour leader equally gave some hints on preventing the virus such as regularly and thoroughly washing the hands with an alcohol-based hand rub (sanitizer) or wash them with soap and water.
On the latest developments about COVID-19, he urged that workers should adhere to the advice given by their healthcare provider, national and local public health authority and employer on how to protect themselves and others from the virus.
He called on government to give equal attention to the treatment of malaria, noting that what was good for coronavirus was also good for malaria and road accidents.
He said, “There are an estimated 100 million malaria cases with over 300,000 deaths per year in Nigeria. This compares with 215,000 deaths per year in Nigeria from HIV/AIDS. Malaria contributes to an estimated 11% of maternal mortality.
“Every year, over 39,000 Nigerians die from road crashes. In the 2018 Global Status Report on Road Safety, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated road traffic fatalities in Nigeria at 39,802, while the estimated rate per 100,000 deaths stood at 21.4.
Let’s fight malaria and road accidents as we fight coronavirus,” he said.
