Spokesman to the state governor, Crusoe Osagie said the suspected cases whose samples were sent to the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital all tested negative.

In a statement on Sunday, March 8, 2020, Osagie said the state government has taken proactive measures to ensure that residents of the state are protected.

The statement reads, “We are committed to keeping Edo people abreast with the government’s response mechanism to the outbreak of COVID-19 across the world and in Nigeria.

“At the moment, we want to inform the general public that there is no confirmed case of COVID-19 in Edo State.

“The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Patrick Okundia, in his last update, said for the last suspected case which was presented at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), samples were taken to the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, which tested negative to COVID-19.

“All suspected cases of COVID-19 whose samples were sent to the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) from Edo State, also tested negative to the virus.

“The state government has taken proactive measures to ensure that we protect our people and guard against the spread of the virus to the state.”

Coronavirus, which started from Wuhan, a city in China in December 2019, has spread to over 45 countries.