Former President of the Directors Guild of Nigeria, Fidelis Duker, sent an open letter to all the attendees of the AMVCA yesterday. In the letter, Duker urged them to do the responsible thing.
The Lagos State Ministry of Health issued an alert that the attendees of the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards were in close proximity to a carrier of the coronavirus. Unfortunately, this was ten days after the fact.
In this time, anyone who has contracted the virus has probably passed it on to many other people. The likelihood is that those that are yet to show symptoms are not self-isolating.
And as such, Duker has posted the letter to appeal to the conscience and reason of the AMVCA attendees; in order to flatten the curve of the viral infection.
In the letter, Duker writes:
“The responsible thing I expect from all those who attended the 7th AMVCA on Saturday, March 14 at the Eko Hotel in Lagos is to show the world a high level of social responsibility.
“…I still appeal to all those who attended and have observed any of the symptoms to call the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) hotlines and report your cases because it’s about 11 days after the award ceremony.
“It is better you do this for yourselves, family, friends, colleagues and, importantly, the nation. Even the venue itself has since partially shut down temporarily, which evidently shows a responsible organisation.
“One of the reasons for the spread and increase number of cases is the irresponsibility shown by some of the confirmed cases. We can only reduce this spread by doing the right thing.
“However, for all those who attended and haven’t experienced any symptoms; please continue to observe the self-isolation rules and avoid contacts.
“It is obvious, coronavirus is with us and we must individually and collectively fight it to a standstill.
“Note also that the fact you attended the AMVCA does not mean you have the virus. However, there are possibilities you might have had contacts knowingly or unknowingly with any of the two cases mentioned by the Lagos state government.
“To all of us, this is not the time for stigmatization of anybody. Rather we must offer support and empathy to ourselves.
“Importantly, the fatality rate can be minimized in Nigeria if we collectively maintain responsible behavioural traits.
“In conclusion, as the Lagos state government continues its efforts at contact tracing; please be responsible enough to offer the required cooperation.
Read the full letter here.