The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has pronounced the suspected 2019 novel coronavirus case recorded in the Ashanti Region as negative.

Speaking on Joy Fm’s Newsnite, Public Health Director of GHS, Dr Badu Sarkodie said the victim who was showing signs of acute sugar illness, respiratory symptoms was quickly tested and after 12 hours, the results showed no sign of the virus.

This, he said: “sums up the number of suspected cases in Ghana to 30, and they have all tested negative.”

The unidentified suspect is said to have started exhibiting symptoms of the virus over the weekend shortly after arriving from Germany where over 126 cases have been recorded.

Dr Sarkodie indicated that although the patient died, the cause of his death was not due to the coronavirus.

“The cause of death has not been established but what is important is that, he did not have the virus,” he emphasised.

Commenting on alleged reports of lack of checks at entry points of the country, the Public Health Director denied claims and assured citizens that rigorous checks are being done at the major entry points of the country to ensure that Ghana does not record a case.

The General Secretary of the Ghana Medical Association, Dr Justice Yankson, on his part said although the country is prepared to handle coronavirus cases, it is only at the national level and the same observation cannot be made at the local levels.

“At the facility level, especially within the community and sub-districts levels some of the activities are yet to be completed the way the structure looks at the national level.

“We need a lot more sensitization, we also need to train and retrain some of the health professionals at the district levels such that their ability to identify and report properly for to be able to contain a case,” he indicated,