Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has said that the state is working on having its own homegrown treatment for the cure of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Akeredolu made this known while giving updates on the state of Covid-19 pandemic in the state at the Government House Grounds on Monday in Akure.
He explained that government had been encouraging herbal and unorthodox medicine practitioners in the state to find cure for the virus.
“Whatever the cure the state comes up with will still go through clinical authentication and approval.”
“There have been various suggestions and unauthorised recommendations of drugs and therapies for COVID-19.”
On this note, the Governor advised citizens of the state not to jeopardize their health through self-medication.
“We wish to use this opportunity to advise the public against embarking on any harmful and indiscriminate act.
“All the herbal combinations and orthodox medicine, mostly being promoted and displayed on the social media and elsewhere, have not yet been authenticated and approved for clinical use,” he said.
The Governor lamented the spate of community transmission of the coronavirus in the state. He indicated this with the confirmation of the 20th and latest case of COVID-19 case who never travelled outside the state in recent time.
“Our records of only four confirmed new cases support that the curve is not flattening yet and that there is still much to be done,” he said.
In the meantime, the Governor also revealed that the state government is set to meet with religious leaders and other stakeholders within the state to explore ways of relaxing the ban placed on religious gatherings.
“We will accelerate such consultations and review. Without doubt, the people will hear from me very soon,” he said.
While noting that all containment regulations earlier pronounced by Ondo State Government are geared towards curbing the spread of the disease, and are still in force, the Governor implored the Police and other Security Agencies as well as the Governor’s Task Force to fully implement Government’s directives on markets’ regulations.
