Speaker reminds MPs to go for COVID-19 test

Ongoing tests for Members of Parliament (MPs) have revealed that some MPs are COVID-19 positive, yet some are unwilling to go for the test being done for members.

Reports have it that less than a third of the membership of the House have so far taken the test.

Following a three-day screening exercise organised for the MPs it has come up that some are reluctant to go for the test, causing the period to be extended.

The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Bagbin, on Friday confirmed the report, and while urging members to take advantage of the extended period, which lasts till next Tuesday, warned them and the staff to adhere strictly to the safety protocols.

“Even in the House some members are afflicted by the COVID-19,” he said.

“You may not know who the person is and because of the protocol issues of confidentiality, we are not disclosing those who are now COVID-19 victims. But we have some of us in that category,” Speaker Bagbin said.

The Speaker said the House had arranged with the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research to use three days for the exercise, but noted that: “The three days are over but I am reliably informed that a number of our members have not yet taken the opportunity to either do the screening or to even undergo the COVID-19 test.”

Despite the reminder, some members still were reluctant to go for the mandatory test and the Speaker reminded the House to pay heed to the protocols.

“Members should take the protocols seriously. In fact when I was entering I myself had to signal some members to respect the physical distancing,” the Speaker said.

Source: GNA