Tamale mayor tests negative for coronavirus

Metropolitan Chief Executive of Tamale, Iddrisu Musah Superior and the Presiding Member, Mohammed Alhassan of the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly have tested negative for Coronavirus, Director of Health Services in Tamale, Dr. Francis Soah Ali, has revealed.

Speaking in an interview with Tamale based-The Voiceless Media Dr Soah Ali urged that the public disregard social media discussions to the effect that the voluntary test conducted on the Mayor of Tamale and the Presiding Member was a sham and fake.

The Medical Director explained that the same method that was used to test the 10 COVID-19 positive patients in Tamale, the Police who first came into contact with the ten suspected cases and some health workers, was the same method which was used on the mayor and others.

Dr. Francis Soah Ali explained that samples for the COVID-19 tests are done in many ways but three methods are used in the Northern Region namely: Nose swab, throat swab and blood sample and all three samples were collected from the Tamale Mayor and sent to a reference laboratory in Kumasi and the result was negative.

Dr. Ali explained further that stool and filaments from the nose could also be used as samples for COVID-19 testing and advised the general public to desist from speaking authoritatively on subjects they don't have deep knowledge about.

The Mayor of Tamale has been at the forefront in enforcing compliance with a government directive on public gathering in Tamale and had to voluntarily submit himself to a test that has generated mix reactions from the public.

It is in the wake of the controversy that the Voiceless Media had to contact the appropriate professionals for the truth or otherwise of the matter and our findings are captured in this story.