Imeobi Igbo Forum, a pan-Igbo grassroots socio-cultural organisation, on Monday urged South-East governors to mass-produce and distribute face masks to help protect the citizens against COVID-19 pandemic.
The National President of the Forum, Dr Mike Ikegulu, gave the advice in a statement made available to newsmen in Enugu.
Ikegulu said that the governors should make face mask a mandatory and regular use in all public places.
He suggested that the governors should take unified and concerted approach to all issues of COVID-19.
“The governors should adopt a stance that will ensure total sealing of the interstate borders as well as end the illegal transactions which allow interstate vehicular movements, especially at night hours,’’ Ikegulu said.
He called on the governors to jointly solicit for donations and support, saying that funds should be managed jointly by the South-East Governors’ Forum.
Ikegulu said that so far, mostly those who benefited from governments were responding, saying that it should not be so.
“We call on all wealthy ‘Umu Igbo’ – Igbo people to respond to this call. Our spirit of oneness should be exhibited in this circumstance.
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“A committee of governors will give more confidence to donors and ensure equitable and corrupt-free management of the funds.
“We advise that this fund be augmented with security votes. We are now in a state of health insecurity.
“Relief materials from this and other efforts should be distributed to the people through the town unions across the South-East,’’ he said.
Ikegulu also called on the governors to persuade the Federal Government to release whatever was due to the zone (cash and grain) as a matter of urgency.
