Managing Director of the State Transport Company (STC) Nana Akomea has called for a lockdown to avert a spread of the new coronavirus.

The former Communication Director of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) writing on Facebook said he is convinced the move would save a lot of Ghanaians from contracting the disease.

“I am convinced beyond doubt that a shutdown/lockdown/curfew should happen very quickly to save ourselves from thousands of coronavirus infections and hundreds of deaths,” he wrote.

He dismissed concerns that Ghana has a largely poor population which earns a living on a daily basis. He said:” India, with much more poor people than Ghana, is doing just that…”

“Perhaps, we can consider a pattern of six-day lockdown followed by partial opening on the seventh, over a month-long period.”

His comment adds to the growing pressure on government to lockdown the country as the cases of Covid-19 increases almost on a daily basis over the past 15 days.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the Information Minister, has said government is considering all options available not necessarily a locking down the country as has been done by many countries.

He raised concerns about the large number of people living on hand to mouth basis, noting that they would be disadvantaged.