NADMO Officials Should Stop Flouting Social Distancing -Mr Mathias Tulasi

Mathias Tulasi, the Chief Executive Officer of Literacy Ambassadors Ghana (LAG), a non governmentmal literacy organisation has lamented over the way NADMO officials made people to scramble for food at Asokwa.

The full statement below

Studies on disaster preparedness have found that one of the best ways to get other people to adopt new habits is to model them.

The literature shows that people will change their behaviour if there are three conditions in place: they know what to do, why to do it and they see other people like themselves also doing it.

Consistency from leaders gives individuals more reason to spread the message about best practices themselves.

It is unfortunate that in this 21st century, the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) as a government agency that is responsible for the management of disasters as well as other emergencies in Ghana seen equally causing "disaster" in the way their officials are not observing social distancing during sharing of food to the vulnerable people in the lockdown areas.

Surprisingly, in an interview granted by Mr Ayisi, the Communications Director National Disaster Management (NADMO) on StarrFM, where he indicated

government is spending GH₵2 million a day on the hot meals being provided for Ghanaians in the lockdown areas in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic thus GH₵5 on each pack of food to feed over 400,000 people.

He refuted issues concerning disregard for social distancing by their officials during the distribution of the food.

Mr Ayisi said, "he was yet to come across any of the videos suggesting that people were scrambling for the food".

I hope Mr Ayisi has by now seen the one that happened at Asokwa?

It must be reiterated that in our quest as a country to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it is important that all officials discharging their duties in these trying moments make it a sacred duty to make sure those they dealing with at any point in time are made to adhere to the social distancing protocols.

The National Disaster Management (NADMO) must instruct its officials to go by social distancing protocols else their action may result in spreading the COVID-19 because one cannot tell who among the vulnerable may be carrying the virus.

Though it is a fact out of fear on the part of the citizenry and the thinking that the food may not be enough is making them to crowd even before the NADMO officials get there, it is still their duty to make sure the people observe the social distancing before the food is been given out to them.

The video circulating on social media concerning how the distribution was done at Asokwa should be of concern to all Ghanaians and that should never be repeated moving forward.

It is important that government makes use of Assembly Members, Unit Committee Members, and other social workers in its social intervention provisions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I am also by this statement condemning the Chorkor beach episode.

The entire citizenry should make it a sacred duty to observe social distancing protocols at all times.

Let us all be reminded by the saying that "prevention is better than cure".