The minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed, has denied testing positive for COVID-19.
Recall there were reports that some presidential aides including the minister tested positive for the virus.
Meanwhile, Segun Adeyemi, the minister’s media aide in a statement on Sunday, said his principal is healthy and not receiving any treatment.
“For the record, the Minister does not have Covid-19, hence he is neither in isolation nor receiving treatment anywhere,” the statement reads.
“The Minister was at the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday, an extraordinary FEC meeting on Thursday and also witnessed the swearing-in of the Minister of State for Works and Housing on Friday.
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“All these events took place at the Villa, where the correspondents of many media organisations are deployed. In fact, the minister coordinated the post-FEC press briefing on Wednesday and Thursday.
“Could he have done this from the imaginary isolation centre where he was consigned by a mischievous reporter?
“As a member of the Presidential Steering Committee on Covid-19, the minister has the added responsibility of leading by example, hence would not have hesitated to publicly announce his Covid-19 status if indeed he has contracted the virus.
“After all, he is not only fully vaccinated — he has also taken the booster shot, a situation that offers him different layers of protection even if he contracts the virus.”
Adeyemi added that those who contract the virus deserve empathy and prayers, not stigmatisation.
