TheCable

Abba Kyari, chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, is responding “very well” to treatment but his doctors have asked him to rest more, family sources have told TheCable.

The president’s right-hand man last week tested positive for COVID-19 but has only experienced mild symptoms, according to family sources.

“Since the diagnosis, he has had the occasional cough, which, though not chesty, remained stubborn, hence his decision to transfer to a private facility in Lagos for further tests and observations,” a family member told TheCable on Thursday afternoon.

“Up till now, he has had no high fever or difficulty in breathing, and the cough is subsiding after treatment, so he is making good progress. The doctors want him to sleep and rest more for now, so they took his phones away but he is stable and improving.”

Kyari had gone into self-quarantine on March 23 after the diagnosis.

In a press statement on Monday, he said he chose private treatment in order not to become an additional burden on the country’s overstretched health system.

Kyari wrote on his transfer to Lagos: “This is a precautionary measure: I feel well, but last week, I tested positive for coronavirus, the pandemic that is sweeping the world. I have followed all the protocols government has announced to self-isolate and quarantine.”

He said like many others that will test also positive, “I have not experienced high fever or other symptoms associated with this new virus and have been working from home. I hope to be back at my desk very soon.”