Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana Dr Kwame Asante has brushed off Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah's assertion that the recent rise in COVID-19 cases in Ghana are not down to political rallies.
Kojo Oppong Nkrumah in a press conference on November 9, 2020, said the data available to them indicate that political rallies are not the cause of the recent rise in Covid-19 cases.
According to him, the data suggests rather that the spike in cases are being recorded in closed workspaces and offices.
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Dr Asante however does not agree and says the numbers went down until the political parties began their campaign rallies and health walks.
"You realize that after the passage of regulating the conduct of people with regards to COVID everything went on fine until the political campaigns started. We are seeing mass rallies and then in recent times, the parties have adopted health walks, holding hands and walking close to each other to the disregard of COVID protocols. We started well but the parties came in and have abandoned all these protocols and this has accounted for a rise"
Also, a virologist at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr. Michael Owusu says until a vaccine is introduced, there will continue to be a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases in Ghana.
According to him, the sudden increase is to be expected, since the majority of Ghanaians have thrown caution to the wind regarding the safety protocols.
His comment follows a survey carried out by the Ghana Health Service which indicated that most Ghanaians are abandoning the protocols; that is the wearing of masks and regular washing of hands with soap under running water.
The Service also stated that the reduction in adherence had moved from 44.3% to 5%.