PNG Member of Parliament Mendani dies from COVID-19

 The Controller of the PNG COVID-19 National Pandemic Response and Police Commissioner David Manning has announced the death of Richard Mendani, the Papua New Guinea Member of Parliament for Kerema Open from COVID-19.

 “Sadly, his passing comes one year to the day since the first COVID-19 infection was detected in our country,” Manning said.

 

He said Mendani was presented to the Pacific International Hospital (PIH) Emergency Department on 24 February with the complaint of fever, cough, breathlessness, and headaches since 19 February. He was initially diagnosed with pneumonia at Hope Clinic but as his condition did not improve he was referred to PIH for further evaluation and management.

 

“On clinical suspicion of COVID-19, PCR testing was conducted and he was confirmed positive. The threat of death from COVID-19 is real, and sadly the late Member paid the ultimate price and lost his life because of this terrible virus,” Manning said, adding that “COVID-19 is an invisible killer that spreads through the air we inhale, and the objects that we touch. But we as a people, as workers, as small business owners and government employees, can do our part to protect our loved ones and try to keep them safe.”

 

Manning said since the first COVID-19 infection was detected as having entered Papua New Guinea, our Government has been educating our people on the necessary safety protocols.

 

He said, “We came through the first wave of the virus spread better than many other countries because Papua New Guineans are a caring people, and because we want to keep our communities safe. But this second wave of infections is much worse than the first and we must not let our guard down.

 

“The number of detected COVID-19 infections today has reached 3,085, which is triple the positive cases one month ago, and we must prepare for this number to continue rising.

 

“Now is the time for all of our people to be reminded of how serious this threat is to us and continue to take precautions to stop the spread. We must wear face masks, we must wash our hands constantly and we must maintain social distancing everywhere possible.

 

“The enemy of our people is the virus, and it is up to every one of us to fight this by being proactive and stopping its spread,” Manning said.

 

PNG has reported a total of 295 new cases  of COVID-19 from 13 provinces on Friday, raising the national total confirmed cases of COVID-19 to 3,085.

 

The death toll remained at 36.

 

The National Capital District reported the highest of 164, followed by Eastern Highlands with 38 cases. The other provinces that have reported new cases in the last 24 hours were West Sepik – 20; Morobe -22; Western Highlands – 13; East New Britain – 15; Autonomous Region of Bougainville – 14; Enga -1; New Ireland – 2; East Sepik – 3; Central – 1; Hela -1; and Southern Highlands – 1.

 

Unlike some diseases, COVID-19 is affecting people from across all sectors, including the well-to-do.

 

Also, all age groups are being affected, including the young. For instance,  the youngest confirmed case in NCD was a five-year-old and the oldest was a 70-year-old. The medium age was 38 years old.

 

In the Eastern Highlands, the youngest confirmed was a three-year-old child, and the oldest was 77 years old. The medium age group was 38 years old. In Morobe, the youngest confirmed was 9 years old and the oldest 64 years old. The medium age is 38 years old.

 

This highlights the need for everyone to be on guard against this virus that is sweeping across the world and threatening to do the same in PNG.

 

Since the outbreak, a total of 55,411 people in PNG have been tested for COVID-19, out of which 3,085 have tested positive. Currently, pending at the laboratory for results are 2,379 samples.

 

Manning said he is pleased people are not afraid to go for tests, especially in NCD.

 

“Let’s all take care of our health by going for a test. That is also the only way we will know whether we are free of the virus or not, especially at this time when the virus is spreading in the community and everyone is at risk," he said.

 

Manning has challenged every educated person in PNG to make it their business to give correct information about COVID-19 to their loved ones and others around them to save lives.

 

“It is the duty of every one of us to ensure we are doing the right thing and giving correct information to save our people," he said.

SOURCE: PNG GOVT/PACNEWS / ONEPNG

Next : Solomon Islands receive 24,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility