Mr Taiwo Adisa, the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, has said that his principal did not contract the virus at the PDP unification rally held on March 18 in Ibadan.
The governor’s aide said in a statement on Tuesday in Ibadan that there was no known incident of COVID-19 as at the time the rally was held.
He stated that insinuations in some quarters that Makinde, who on Monday tested positive to COVID-19, contracted the disease at the rally was not correct.
He said: “The issue of the governor being said to have contracted Covid-19 at the March 18 PDP South West Zonal Unification Rally doesn’t come to play because there was no known incident of the virus in Oyo State at that time.
“Also, the governor didn’t have any symptom(s) as of that time.
“At the time that the rally was held, there was no known case of the COVID-19 and after the rally.
“Gov Makinde actually put out a message to indicate that if he had got a hint of the existence of coronavirus in the state an hour to the rally, he would have cancelled the event.
” He took responsibility for holding the rally. So, we can’t afford to politicise the issue of COVID-19. It is beyond politics.”
Adisa, however, said the only plausible case of exposure that Makinde had to coronavirus was when he attended the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting on March 19, a day after the Ibadan rally.
He stated that all governors who attended that meeting were advised to self-isolate and undergo testing after one of the attendees tested positive to the virus.
Adisa warned individuals trying to politicise the governor’s case to desist from doing so and look for ways of supporting the efforts to stop the spread of the virus.
(NAN)