COVID-19: The sharing of free food has stopped - Kojo Oppong Nkrumah

- Ghana's Information Minister has indicated that free food would not be shared to the vulnerable any longer

- This follows the decision by government to remove the ban on movement by lifting the partial lockdown imposed on some areas in the country

- Government had started offering food packages to people affected by the lockdown to help sustain them

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Ghana' information minister, Honourable Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has said that the sharing of free food has stopped as the president has lifted the partial lockdown in the affected areas.

A news report by Peacefmonline indicates that the information minister disclosed this during a radio interview with Kwami Sefa Kayi on PeaceFM's "Kokrokoo".

It may be recalled that the government started the distribution of free meals to an estimated 400,000 Ghanaians with limited means in locked-down areas amidst the COVID-19 outbreak in Ghana.

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On the night of April 19, 2020, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo addressed the nation for the seventh time regarding the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country, indicating that the ban on movement has been lifted.

This decision means that most people in the country would still be able to go about their normal day-to-day activities that would help bring money into their pockets and food onto their tables.

Perhaps, it explains why the government could confidently cut the budget meant to provide hot meals for people on a daily basis, as they can work now.

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It should, however, be noted that Nana Addo did not lift a ban on social gatherings and churches, mosques, political campaigns and the like are still not allowed.

Yet, the decision to remove the partial lockdown has sparked great controversy among many people in Ghana who think it is premature to lift the lockdown at this stage.

Although the president did not give details on exactly why he decided to lift the ban on movement despite the surge in Ghana's cases, it is clear that it was having an adverse effect on the livelihoods of people and the economy as well.

In another development, a total of 40 deaths have been recorded in relation to the outbreak of cerebrospinal meningitis (CSM) in the Upper West Region of Ghana, out of the 409 cases reported in total.

This was confirmed in a statement released by the Disease Surveillance Department of the Ghana Health Service on its official Twitter handle.

It is indicated that 258 out of the 409 cases of the meningitis were recorded in the Upper West Region alone, which makes it the epicentre of the disease outbreak.

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Source: YEN.com.gh