One of the sons of former vice president and 2019 Presidential Candidate for PDP, Atiku Abubakar has tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
This was revealed by Atiku, through his verified Twitter account on Sunday night. The former vice president disclosed that his son has been transferred to the Gwagwalada Specialist Teaching Hospital in Abuja for isolation and treatment.
The tweet from Atiku reads: “My son has tested positive to coronavirus. @NCDCGov has been duly informed, and he has been moved to Gwagwalada Specialist Teaching Hospital in Abuja for treatment and management.
He said that the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), has been notified of the new development and will appreciate it if Nigerians have him in their prayers.
He encouraged Nigerians to stay safe and be cautious as the coronavirus disease is real.
Just a few hours before the former vice president made the announcement he had tweeted his support and praise for the health workers battling the virus, which has infected hunderd of thousands across the globe, with over 12,000 deaths. He also acknowledged that this pandemic has forced almost a billion people to stay indoors as governments move to tackle its spread.
In the tweet, he said, “I join millions of other Nigerians to celebrate our health workers for their courageous work at this challenging time, and I urge all Nigerians to remain strong while we fight the scourge of this #COVIDー19 to the end”.
Atiku’s announcement comes a day in which the NCDC announced eight new cases of coronavirus, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 30.
Of the eight cases announced on Sunday, six were in Lagos, one was in Oyo State and one in the nation’s capital Abuja.
It is not clear if the case confirmed in Abuja on Sunday is Abubakar’s son or whether he represents a fresh case.