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Delta Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa (right) receiving, the three ambulances donated by BUA Foundation. PHOTO: JIBUNOR SAMUEL.

Governor of Delta, Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa, says collective efforts is what is needed to check the spread of COVID-19 in the state and the country.

He made the call in Asaba on Monday while receiving three ambulances donated to the state government by Bua Group to support the state’s effort at curtailing the virus, and stressed that defeating COVID-19 would not be an impossible task if all Nigerians obeyed set health protocols with commitment..

“It is important that we work together to be able to beat the virus, because there is nothing we can do if people continue to disobey the guidelines that have been put forth; if such continues, then all the battles we are fighting against the virus will just be a waste.

“I want to appeal to Deltans and Nigerians in general that we should try to put on our face masks in public; it’s important and it will help us quite a lot in the fight against COVID-19.

“You should also learn to wash your hands and make sure that as much as possible, you keep a safe distance from others.

“The virus will continue to fight back if we do not do the right thing; but, when we are able to do the right thing, we are able to slow down the level of transmission and eventually we will be able to win in the battle.

`I hope that Deltans will please, just strive to obey the rules and ensure that we all put our hands on deck to fight this battle together,” the governor said.

He thanked the Chairman of Bua Group, Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, for donating the ambulances to aid the state in the fight against COVID-19.saying “it is a privileged honour that the state has received from him’’.

“One very good thing that I must put on note is that we did not make a request, and the gesture is how you know those who are philanthropic.

“We did not make any request; he just called and said, as part of his assistance to various states, that he wants to make a donation to the state.

“That is how you know people who genuinely, from their heart, want to be of assistance to the people, and I am very much aware that the Chairman of BUA Group has done quite a lot.

“He is part of the private group leading CACOVID and they have done a lot in terms of providing palliative, in terms of providing equipment, in terms of providing other logistics, and beyond what he has done in support of that group, he has also deemed it necessary to bring us three fully-kitted ambulances as a state.

“I think it is a very good gesture; we are very happy as a state and on behalf of the government and people of Delta State, we appreciate this and we believe that if Nigeria can continue to have more men like him, I’m sure that this country will be a much better place for us.

“There is no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic has come to affect the world in a very unexpected way, and it has affected not only the health of the people, but has also come to impact very negatively on the economy of the nations and in Nigeria, it has impacted very badly on our economy.

“And, at this time that we need a lot of logistics for movement, being able to move patients from one point to the other; I think that the ambulances are very useful to us and we are very grateful, it has come in timely,” Okowa added.

Earlier, Head, Corporate Communications, Bua Group, Mr Otega Ogre, said that Okowa’s administration had done a lot in the fight against COVID-19 and that the ambulances were Bua Group’s contributions to assist the state in the fight against the global pandemic.

High point of the event was the presentation of keys of the ambulances to the governor.