By: Gibrilla Koroma
In a brief address to the nation yesterday, President Bio said the bodyguard had been in quarantine and eventually tested positive for the disease but the President insisted that no member of his family was showing any symptoms of the coronavirus.
Umaru Fofana also revealed that the Presidential Spokesman Keketuma Sandy told him that the President would be working from home. As we go press, there is no confirmation whether the Sierra Leone President has been tested positive or not, he said
This shocking revelation yesterday came weeks after continuous speculation about the Sierra Leone First Lady Fatima Jabbie Bio having acquired the symptoms of the deadly coronavirus.
The rift rumour regarding the First Lady’s acquisition of the virus went viral on social media a few weeks ago and was exacerbated when Fatima Bio returned from The Gambia, her last foreign visit outside Sierra Leone before the national lockdown.
No official confirmation or denial had been forthcoming from the government or the Office of the First Lady, a situation that has only further facilitated the rumour mongers on their speculating spree.
Sierra Leoneans were waiting for a publicized press conference that is yet to hold in Freetown but it was called off in the eleventh hour by the government without any official reason. It has now been rescheduled for a suitable time that will be communicated to pressmen.
Meanwhile, as from yesterday Monday 20th to 21 April 2020, Sierra Leone has confirmed seven additional coronavirus cases. It is now totalling 50 cases so far. It is also confirmed that six coronavirus victims have been discharged from the hospital. And so far, no reported death from COVID-19 disease in the country has been confirmed.