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PANIC has gripped the ruling Zanu PF party after two senior party officials on Sunday tested positive for COVID-19 with confirmed cases likely to go up as results of mass tests done recently continue to pour in. BY MOSES MATENGA Zanu PF secretary for administration Obert Mpofu and the party’s director for Information Tafadzwa Mugwadi are now in isolation at home together with affected members of their respective families. The Zanu PF COVID-19 scare comes as Zimbabwe has recorded 291 deaths with 10 of them having been recorded on Saturday only. Ministry of Health and Child Care COVID-19 statistics yesterday showed that there are 10 718 cases of the virus that have been recorded throughout the country. However, the country has also recorded 8 880 recoveries. The party’s secretary for Health David Parirenyatwa yesterday told NewsDay in an interview that the party was now on high alert, adding that all measures were being put in place to curb the further spread of the deadly virus at their headquarters situated in Harare, which also houses a number of party bigwigs and staff. The Zanu PF headquarters also plays host to several party meetings. “What we did last time was to screen people and the results are coming in batches and all those who have been found to be positive have been asked to go into self-isolation and to come back after the prescribed date,” Parirenyatwa said without confirming the actual number of those affected. “When we started the COVID-19 tests as a party, the first batch had five cases but that was about two months ago. So we are now going symptomatically and we check on anyone who would have developed the symptoms. The first time, we did a mass test but now we are following the national policy and that is what we are doing,” he said. Parirenyatwa said the party was putting on a lot of measures to reduce the spread of the virus that has already claimed millions of lives internationally. “We are putting a lot of measures now; we screen people at the gate, we do temperature checks and all the normal routine. We are intensifying that and even in our lifts, we have put COVID-19 measures, and as people get into other offices we make sure prevention protocols are observed,” he said. Mugwadi yesterday took to microblogging site Twitter to announce that he was self-isolating at home and is adhering to all medical tips to suppress the virus. “I will adhere to every medical tip as I battle this pandemic with my family,” Mugwadi wrote on his social media account. Acting Zanu PF spokesperson Patrick Chinamasa was not immediately available to comment on the matter. However, workers at the ruling party headquarters who spoke on condition of anonymity said there were fears that quite a number of people at the party offices could have contracted COVID-19. Most of the officials work from the building and were feared to have been in close contact with the infected. To make matters worse, they were currently reportedly deployed across the country for the party district co-ordinating committee (DCC) elections, whereas a
The president also stressed the importance of keeping the economy open after months of stifling movement restrictions.
He urged citizens not to drop their guard and continue adhering to the health rules, such as wearing face masks and respecting curfew times.
South Africa has recorded just over 800,000 coronavirus infections - more than a third of the cases reported across the African continent - and over 20,000 deaths.
AFP
Executive Director for the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP) Jeanette Calder has pointed to a significant gap in the accountability framework of Parliament whereby lawmakers have failed to debate dozens of reports from two critical...
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy entered a recession in February as the coronavirus struck the nation, a group of economists declared Monday, ending the longest expansion on record.
The economists said that employment, income and spending peaked in February and then fell sharply afterward as the viral outbreak shut down businesses across the country, marking the start of the downturn after nearly 11 full years of economic growth.
In the previous recession, the committee did not declare that the economy was in recession until December 2008, a year after it had actually begun.
“The unprecedented magnitude of the decline in employment and production, and its broad reach across the entire economy, warrants the designation of this episode as a recession, even if it turns out to be briefer than earlier contractions,” the NBER panel said.
In its updated global outlook, the World Bank projected that international economic activity will shrink by 5.2% this year, the deepest recession since a contraction in 1945-46 at the end of World War II.
South Africa’s long-distance passenger train service has returned in time for the festive season.
Uganda’s inter-religious council called off the eagerly awaited presidential candidates’ debate.
The council said the debate, that was due on Thursday 03 was cancelled due to limited resources.
Local media reported that a total of ten presidential candidates were expected to grace the occasion.
This comes amid numerous complaints majorly from the opposition who have constantly blamed the security apparatus for rights violations.
Uganda opposition have in most cases face wrath of the police especially the renowned musician-turned politician, Bobi Wine.
Two weeks ago, 54 people died in protests after Wines supporters called for his release following a brief arrest at campaign rally.
They have defended themselves by claiming that they were only implementing Covid-19 guidelines to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
Bobi Wine was later charged with violating pandemic restrictions on gathering of crowds and granted bail.
The embattled singer later met the electoral commission and asked them to ensure that there should be equitable campaigns and police should be stopped from intimidating the opposition leaders and their members.
FLORIDA, United States (AP) - Brad Six becomes Santa Claus, pulling his black boots over his red pants in the office of a Miami, Florida, outdoor supply company. It's hot, so he forgoes the traditional heavy jacket for a lightweight vest and grabs his Santa hat. But before sliding it on, the gray-bearded 61-year-old dons a plastic face shield and then takes his chair positioned behind a plexiglass sheet.
Hundreds of medics protest in Tunisia on Friday following the death of a young doctor in a hospital elevator in the Jendouba region of the country’s northwest.
Badreddedine Aloui, 26, plunged to his death on Thursday down an elevator shaft after the lift doors opened but with no elevator in place, witnesses said.
\"He was only 26 years old, he had his whole future ahead of him. Today, he and his family have been deprived of a bright future, why? Because we live in a system that doesn't try to improve, that does not try to make things work, to not have too many problems, and in the end we don't fix, we don't repair. In the end the accident happens, and there are deaths\", said Dr. Zakaria Bouguerra.
The elevator, in a hospital in the marginalized Jendouba region, had allegedly remained in service despite a long-reported fault.
Hundreds of medics including doctors, health workers and medical students gathered in front of the health ministry in the capital Tunis, demanding the health minister and other officials be sacked.
The hospital has been visited by two government ministers over the past months, including Health Minister Faouzi Mehdi in October.
A similar protest was also held in the eastern port city of Sfax.
Local media reported that Tunisian Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi has ordered a state funeral for the late surgeon to be buried in his native Kasserine, in western Tunisia on Friday.
Tunisians have also taken to social media to denounce what they say are dysfunctional public services, particularly in the health sector, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden said Thursday that he will ask Americans to commit to 100 days of wearing masks as one of his first acts as president, stopping just short of the nationwide mandate he's pushed before to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The move marks a notable shift from President Donald Trump, […]
May 27: Health Minister infected, cases pass 1,000 mark
\tLocal media portals have reported that Zambia’s health minister has tested positive for COVID-19.
Zambia virus stats as of May 24, 2020 at 13:00 GMT
Confirmed cases = 920
Deaths = 7
Recoveries = 336
Active cases = 577
May 20: Nakonde records more new cases
\tNakonde, the border town with Tanzania continues to record more cases of the virus.
The one-stop border post in Nakonde was closed last week by President Lungu amid a spike in cases.
May 14 = 654 cases (208 new cases), 7 deaths, 124 recoveries
\t\tMay 13 = 446 cases (5 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 12 = 441 cases (174 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 11 = 267 cases (0 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 10 = 267 cases, 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t
\tThe town of Nakonde was declared a hot spot by the Ministry of Health on May 10 leading to the closure of the frontier with Tanzania.
On Saturday (May 9) 76 new cases were reported in Nakonde, the border town in question.
Sharing a word of warning with the general public, Zweli Mkhize has reminded South Africans that Level 1 of lockdown still comes with tight restrictions.
Gift of the Givers has brought clean water to the village of Ngqushwa in the Eastern Cape, something the municipality has not been able to do for years.
Less than two months removed from a title run that saw them conquer not only their NBA rivals but a host of challenging circumstances in the NBA bubble, the Lakers feel more prepared for the unknown now than before. But even the defending champions admit they’re not quite sure what they’re getting into next. As […]
The robots were donated by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to the Kanyinya treatment center that treats Covid-19 patients in the capital city, Kigali.
The robots — named Akazuba, Ikirezi, Mwiza, Ngabo, and Urumuri — were received by the country’s Minister of Health and Minister of ICT and Innovation last week.
According to Dr. Daniel Ngamije, Rwanda’s minister of health, they also have the capacity to capture sound and visual data of patients and can notify health workers on detected abnormalities.
The robots have the capacity to deliver medicine, food, and other essentials in place of frontline workers to Covid-19 patients undergoing treatment, Ngamije said.
The robot in a hospital in Seattle was employed to check the man’s vitals, limiting contact with health workers.
LONDON, England (AP) - Four people died following an explosion in a silo that holds treated biosolids at a wastewater treatment plant near the south-west England city of Bristol, police said yesterday.
LONDON (AP) — U.K. regulators went on the offensive Friday to beat back criticism that they rushed their authorisation of a COVID-19 vaccine, saying they rigorously analysed data on safety and effectiveness in the shortest time possible...