Reggae Dancehall artiste, Emmanuel Andrews Sammini, known in showbiz circles as Samini has thrown his full support behind calls to lock down the country amid the coronavirus outbreak.
According to Samini, the decision to lock down the country is long overdue and he cannot fathom why the government seems to be delaying in taking such a drastic measure.
In a Twitter post sighted by ABC News, the reggae dancehall artiste admitted that although a lockdown will be harsh now, it will inure to the benefit of the country indicating that failure to do the needful now will result in an explosion of the viral infection which cannot be contained.
He added that there is enough justification for an immediate lockdown which makes debating the issue a waste of time.
“What’s an economy without the people? Lockdown as harsh as it might sound is the only logical way to go at the moment. Borders must be locked down to be able to contain and control widespread..sometimes when the sense is clear debates are just a waste of time. #LockdownNow pls,” the Twitter post of the musician read.
Samini joins several Ghanaians and civil society groups, such as the Trades Union Congress, Bureau of Public Safety among others who are pushing for the government to lock down the country to halt the spread of the COVID-19 which has been described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a global pandemic.
However, President Akufo-Addo in a meeting with the leadership of the Trades Union Congress at the Jubilee House yesterday explained that the government is reluctant to announce a lockdown due to the serious economic impact the decision will have on the poor.
“People in Ghana are now talking about a lockdown. Majority of people who will be affected by decisions of that nature are the working people of our country – the ordinary people of Ghana. They are the ones who will be affected, and it is important for us to take into account their circumstances and conditions,” the president said.
He added that “when we lock down Accra, what are the consequences? A responsible government is required to look at all the implications before decisions are made. And that is the exercise we are currently engaged in, and I am hoping that much sooner than later we will come to an agreement on what those measures are and the Ghanaian people will be informed.
Find the Twitter post of Samini below:
What’s an economy without the people.lockdown as harsh as it might sound is the only logical way to go at the moment.Boarders must be locked down to be able to contain and control wide spread..sometimes when the sense is clear debates are just a waste of time. #LockdownNow pls
— SAMINI (@samini_dagaati) March 26, 2020