Kwekwe Mayor on Covid-19
Kwekwe City Mayor Angeline Kasipo has urged residents to follow the Covid-19 lockdown regulations in order to reduce the spread of the pandemic in the city.
Addressing members of the media in a virtual press conference on Friday, Kasipo urged people to follow the lockdown regulations as the city has recorded an increase in the Covid-19 cases since the second wave struck.
“Over the last months we have seen a laxity by residents, communities and businesses in complying with laid down prevention regulations and lockdown restrictions.
“It is evident that our people in Kwekwe are in need of yet another reminder of what needs to be done in order to beat this virus and this can never be over emphasised,” she said.
In the past few weeks, Kwekwe has been labelled as a hot spot for the pandemic as some people have been declaring deaths that have happened in the city as Covid-19 related.
In that regard, Kasipo urged residents to wait for information from relevant and authentic sources before circulating it on social media.
“Some sources have recently labelled Kwekwe city as a “hot spot” for Covid-19. However, let me hasten to say like any other city/town in Zimbabwe, Kwekwe has not been spared by the ongoing scourge of the pandemic. In the last few weeks, the city has recorded some increases in both cases and deaths due to Covid19.
“As at the morning of 20/01/21 Kwekwe city had a cumulative total of 179 cases, 60 recoveries and 16 deaths. What this means is that we need to have every member of the Kwekwe community doing everything they can to mitigate the negative impacts of this pandemic on our lives.”
Kwekwe city has embarked on various activities aimed at reducing the negative impacts of the pandemic.
“As Kwekwe City we undertook a lot of activities during the first phase in a bid to minimise the spread and the negative effects of the pandemic on the residents.
“We have embarked on a city wide clean up exercise in the CBD, markets and residential areas with support from well-wishers, businesses and individuals, environmental disinfection and fumigation exercises in the CBD, markets, residential areas, public amenities, public offices and homes.
“We have also carried out surveillance, case follow ups, contact tracing, traveller monitoring, risk communication, community engagement, case identification and treatment, supervision of funerals by our city health rapid response team, refurbishing Garandichauya Bar to an Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) now at about 95 percent completion, enforcement of COVID 19 prevention and control measures in all shops, markets and public places,” she said.