Since the outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus pandemic in Ghana, a section of Ghanaians especially opposition political parties are of the view that, President Akufu-Addo’s government is not truthful to its citizens on Coronavirus cases. While some Ghanaians are advocating for publication of data on Coronavirus patients, others disagree with the proposals due to confidentiality, discrimination and stigmatization some patients may go through, meanwhile other countries like China, USA, Italy and others have been displaying videos and pictures of Coronavirus patients to their citizens.
In the latest development, the defeated National Democratic Congress (NDC) Presidential aspirant, the Member of Parliament for Nadowli-Kaleo Constituency and the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament of Ghana, Hon. Alban S.K Bagbin has called on government to display the dead bodies of Coronavirus patients on the Television and other visual platforms to clear the doubt and misconceptions in the mind of Ghanaians to believe that, the Coronavirus pandemic is real in Ghana.
According to the long term serving Member of Parliament Hon. Alban S.K Bagbin, his proposal is supported by feedback he received from people within and outside his constituency who engaged him on issues regarding the Cororavirus.
The Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament speaking on the floor of Parliament after the Health Minister Hon. Kwaku Agyeman-Manu has presented the Ministry of Health’s data on the COVID-19 to the Legislative House, the defeated NDC presidential aspirant asked that, government should introduce a shock therapy system to intensify public education and awareness creation to the general public.
The Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament said “The important thing is that the people we are leading, they want to see. In fact, I want to see on Television some evidence of death because when you state that this number of people are dead but they are not seeing anything like that [it will not give them the shock of their life]. I believe in shock therapy. We need shock therapy to wake them up from slumber and make them know COVID-19 is real.” He further explained.
According to the Ghana Health Service update, Ghana as of Tuesday, 19th May, 2020 has a total of five thousand, nine hundred and eighteen (5,918) positive Coronavirus cases with thirty-one (31) deaths and one thousand, seven hundred and fifty-four (1,754) recoveries.
