Stay at home means stay at home!

The world now faces an existential threat, and in this very trying moment of the COVID-19 scare, one critical way for all to stay safe and alive is to avoid non-essential contacts or simply stay at home.

Ghana is not free from this global threat, for which reason last Friday President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced a stay-at-home measure for residents in the Greater Accra, Greater Kumasi, Tema and Kasoa areas to prevent the increasing community spread of the virus.

Already, Ghana has closed all its borders – land, sea and air – with the country recording nine new confirmed cases of the pandemic last Tuesday, bringing the number of confirmed positive cases to 195.

That figure, according to the Ghana Health Service (GHS), includes some 49 treated and discharged cases and five deaths.

With the rising number of confirmed cases, it is important that residents of the two biggest cities – Accra and Kumasi – in particular obey the movement restrictions currently in place and only go out for essential items.

Nonetheless, three days into the 14-day restriction on movements, we have observed that many people are trooping into the two cities without any great reason.

We find that many people are trying to exploit the privilege given to food sellers to function during this restriction period to abuse the measure.

We see this as being very distasteful and an uncooperative attitude which will not augur well for the success of the national exercise which is aimed at eradicating once and for all the COVID-19 pandemic.

It must be drummed home to all that the directive given by our President must not be a wasted effort. After mobilising a great deal of resources – both human and material – to implement the stay-at-home measure, we cannot allow individual selfishness to derail the process.

Currently, the security services have scaled up their presence in the two cities, leaving no stone unturned to ensure full compliance with the directive.

We are, therefore, appealing to residents of the ‘lockdown’ areas to be law-abiding to avoid any clashes with the security services.

Already, we have seen some footages circulating on social media showing instances of infraction and pure indiscipline. Some citizens are failing to adhere to the stay-at-home directive and that, definitely, is not healthy.

The populace should know that the restrictions are to facilitate the containment of the disease, for the benefit of all, and we at the Daily Graphic strongly ask people to strictly adhere to the directive and remain law-abiding.

We must not be intransigent if we want to avoid the geometric rise in fatalities in some countries. We know the ‘lockdown’ is definitely causing some discomfort, but it is for our own good.

If the citizenry are law-abiding, the security services will not have the excuse to be excessive in trying to enforce the directive.

The COVID-19 pandemic, undoubtedly, presents a security threat to the country and its security services will use any means, including minimum force, to ensure that the citizens are protected.

The Daily Graphic, therefore, advises market women, taxi and trotro drivers and all citizens not to abuse the opportunity to stay safe.

As the security services put in measures to let the people see the seriousness of the issue at hand, nothing must be done to lower the guard.

Around the world, people are dying and the situation does not look good. We currently have over 850,000 infected people globally.

Fears are growing globally and we in Ghana cannot stay indifferent. Our future is in our hands and we can only stay home, stay safe and think of the safety of others.