No need for protection against what is not real - Some Ghanaians express disbelief in coronavirus

The notion of adorning oneself with protective gears in order to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus still appears alien to some people. In their perspective, the virus which has claimed over 370,000 lives worldwide is only a figment of the imagination.

In Ghana, over 8,200 people have already contracted the disease since the first two cases were recorded in March 2020.

The recovery rate according to some Ghanaians hasn’t been inspiring yet some people who have been lucky enough over the past weeks remain nonchalant about the potency of the global pandemic.

GhanaWeb toured some suburbs in Accra which have been identified as coronavirus hotspots by the Ghana Health Service to report notable changes.

But much to our dismay, not much had changed and not even social distancing protocols were being adhered to, barely three months after restrictions on movement were lifted.

In fact, a trader at the Central Buisness District told the news team that, he is only adhering to safety protocols because authorities insist, not because he believes the virus is real.

“Well, I haven’t seen the virus before but they claim it’s real so I just adhere to the protocols and go home. I follow my usual routine... If they show on TV, I’ll definitely believe but until then we’ll just keep sticking to what they tell us to do…,” he said.

Another, who was overly confident about healing prowess of herbal medicines said even though he doesn’t believe the virus is real, he’ll resort to herbal drugs in case he gets infected.

He said, “Your fate tells you the virus is real but mine says otherwise. If I get it right now, I’ll go to my hometown and treat myself with herbal drugs. As far as I’m concerned, the diseases caused by virus can easily be cured with herbal medicine. So me, if I get it I’ll resort to herbal drugs.”

In Tema, the sentiments of some resident were not vastly different.

When a resident who was busy making toffees without her face mask or any protective equipment was asked why she had no safety gear, she said ‘I know neither my children nor myself have contracted the virus so we really don’t care about wearing the mask. In fact, I’m praying against it…”

One such person told GhanaWeb that until he sees infected persons being displayed on TV he may never believe the existence of the virus in Africa. When asked why he wasn’t using a facemask, his response was, “I cannot wear a nose mask for what I don’t believe in, me I don’t believe in it, that’s the truth…”