Postpone entertainment events indefinitely – Dada Hafco on fighting coronavirus

Highlife musician Dada Hafco is urging event organisers to as a matter of urgency postpone their respective events indefinitely as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.

He is of the view that large gatherings could increase chances of the spread of the disease hence, a hold should be put on entertainment events for a certain period as it has been seen in some jurisdictions that are even more advanced than Ghana.

“Coronavirus is basically shutting down the entire world. Therefore wherever you find yourself, it is imperative that you put measures in place to make sure it does not affect innocent citizens,” the 3Music Awards nominee told GhanaWeb.

“For us as entertainers, I think it will be appropriate for us to also start thinking of not coming in contact with people or of not bringing people to a gathering where people can easily catch the virus. The NBA has suspended its activities for the year. If you’re a follower of the NBA, you look at the big money and sponsorship involved and all of that, it makes you think this is getting serious.”

Ghana recorded its first two cases on Thursday. This was after the president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced the countries preparedness to fight the disease – setting aside $100m to enhance the plan.

Already some institutions in the country including University of Ghana (UG), University of Cape Coast (UCC) and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have suspended public gatherings.

Coronavirus has killed more than 5,000 people, sickened over 115,000 and spread to 75 countries and regions worldwide.

About coronavirus

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans.

Coronaviruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people. Detailed investigations found that SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels to humans. Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected humans.

Common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death.

Standard recommendations to prevent infection spread include regular hand washing, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs. Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing.