The Director of Health Services in Parliament, Dr. Prince Pambo has said there will be a challenge in determining the COVID-19 status of persons who have access to Parliament.
He said this in response to the Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu’s concerns over how some persons, who have been identified as contacts of persons with COVID-19 are still mingling with others in the House.
The Suame legislator, who was speaking on the floor of Parliament on Friday observed that the conduct of such persons endangers other persons who still report to Parliament each day to work.
“The arrangement was that anybody who, unfortunately, tested positive will not be openly identified, but that the testing team will have the arrangement to contact them behind the curtain and have the situation managed. Mr. Speaker, that has been the arrangement but unfortunately, some people after contact has been made to them visit Parliament and endanger the lives of all of us.”
Dr. Pambo explained on Eyewitness News that the Majority Leader’s comment might be borne out of the inability to establish whether guests visiting Parliament have either tested positive or negative for COVID-19.
“It will be difficult for Parliament to know who has tested positive or negative. And probably it is coming from the backdrop that Parliament has media people and all sorts of guests and visitors coming in and you do not necessarily have a way of establishing that every person coming to the precincts of Parliament has tested negative or positive. It is extremely difficult to say at any point in time that within the parliamentary precincts anybody walking there is negative or positive.”
Following the mass testing of Members of Parliament on the order of the Speaker of Parliament, Minority Chief Whip, Mubarak Mohammed Muntaka, had insisted that two of his fellow Members of Parliament (MPs) and 13 parliamentary staff had tested positive for the novel coronavirus but Parliament subsequently rejected the claim.
“What happened in Parliament and what you heard [about MPs testing positive for COVID-19] is the fact. It is the truth,” Mr. Muntaka insisted.
Dr. Pambo had earlier indicated that the results of the tests will not be made public.
He said the results will instead be made known individually to the persons tested without the involvement of Parliament.
“The exercise was meant not only for Members of Parliament but the staff of Parliament as well and other support staff who have a duty in the parliamentary precinct and the results will be made known to them individually,” he said.