Run Shift — Minister To Market Women

Ms Barbara Oteng-Gyasi, the Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, has encouraged market women to start practising shift system as a key crowd control measure in the wake of the deadly pandemic.

She also encouraged all Market queens to begin selling the idea among the various groupings of foodstuff sellers, fishmongers to yield the needed results.

The Minister gave the advice when she launched the Western Regional public education campaign on the Coronavirus and the distribution of "Veronica Buckets" and other logistics to various market queens and transport unions across the Region.

She indicated, for instance, tomatoes sellers could come in turns and rotate trading throughout the week as “we observe the social distancing."

Ms Oteng-Gyasi said social distancing was key in avoiding the spread of the virus and as such, markets that housed many more people on daily basis aside transport terminals must be the focus in curbing the spread.

She also advocated self-quarantine adding, "Stay home if you have no business in the market or town, there is no need for window shopping in this critical times".

Mr Kobby Okyere Darko-Mensah, the Western Regional Minister, called on Ghanaians to follow the President's directives to contain Coronavirus.

He said Parliament had given that sole right to the President to place a mandatory ban on all Ghanaians should the situation escalate and therefore stressed the need to abide by all the directives.

Mr Darko-Mensah said there was also no need for fear and panic among the populace once all the health steps and general directives were fully adhered to.

He said, "We need to avoid any ultimate shutdown of the country by the President and that is the more reason why we need to undergo all these serious preparations...this is more than a world cup".

He encouraged all and sundry to help spread the message of hope to all to avoid fear and panic.

The market women and the various transport unions pledged their commitment in containing the spread of the disease.

Dr Kofi Asamening-Mensah, the Deputy Director of Public Health in the Western Region, said officers were trained and there were isolation centres created all over the Region.

He also said all seven suspected cases sent for testing had proven negative, stressing, "There is no cause for alarm in the Region".

---GNA