The Speaker of Parliament has directed all staff who are not working directly to keep proceedings running, to take a break until the coronavirus scare is over

The move is part of measures the House is taking to prevent the spread of coronavirus as cases in Ghana continue to increase.

The Majority Leader who read the Speaker’s directives on his behalf said “there are concerns for National Service operatives in the House. The directive from the Speaker is that those of them who are not engaged in the provision of essential services are to stay at home.

“Those of them rendering essential services especially the Hansard department, table officers are required here, the others depending on the services they render may not be required to be here,” he added.

All unit heads have also been instructed to keep skeletal staff in the House.

Already, 10 Members of Parliament and five parliamentary staff who have travelled to countries affected by the coronavirus have been asked to self-isolate for 14 days.

Ghana has recorded 52 cases of COVID-19 and two deaths.

According to the Health Minister Kwaku Agyeman Manu some 1,030 travellers into the country from Sunday were quarantined as a result of the jump in recorded cases.

Of that number, 611 samples were taken.

A test for 185 of the travellers completed disclosed that 25 of them have Covid-19, adding to already existing 27 cases, he told journalists at the press conference in Accra.