Following the death of the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Maj. Gen. Johnson Irefin, who reportedly died of complications from coronavirus, the positive cases being reported among the top military brass have continued to increase.
Daily Trust reports that as at Monday morning, no fewer than 26 generals who had tested positive after contracting the virus, are now in various isolation centres scattered in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
A source at the Army headquarters told our correspondent in confidence that the recent development has heightened fear in the top echelon of the military, while an official said “there’s no cause for alarm,” adding that all the personnel of NA are undergoing testing in batches.
When asked about the result of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, the source simply said “everything is in order. The COAS is fine in the isolation centre. Though, many of them (GOCs and principal officers) in isolation centres are being monitored closely by medical experts but some of them are still scared.”
When asked about their present location, he said some of them are in the isolation centre located at University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, and other isolation centres but declined to reveal the isolation centre the COAS was.
Effort to reach the Nigerian Army spokesman, Brig. Gen. Sagir Musa, to get the names of affected generals proved abortive as several calls to his mobile phone were not picked. He was also yet to respond to a text message sent to him as at the time of filing this report.
Musa had in a statement on Sunday explained that a total number of 417 personnel has so far been tested with 26 confirmed positive, adding that all the participants in the botched conference have now been quarantined irrespective of their results.
He noted that all officers and soldiers working at the Army Headquarters are being tested and COVID-19 protocols strictly enforced across all units and formations.
