President Nana Akufo-Addo has said Ghana can defeat the coronavirus as a united people, saying now is not the time for political parties to seek to make capital out of the situation.

The pandemic, since entering Ghana’s territory a couple of weeks ago, has killed four people out of one hundred thirty-seven confirmed cases of which two patients have recovered.

In his fourth address to the nation on the situation through which he announced a lockdown on the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions, the President said: “We must be united in our determination and efforts to overcome this challenge”.

“This, certainly, is not the time for politicking or the display of partisanship. The virus does not care which party you belong to, neither is it, as we have seen, a respecter of persons. The enemy is the virus and not each other”, he noted.

The President also announced the “establishment of a COVID-19 Fund to be managed by an independent board of trustees to be chaired by former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo, to receive contributions and donations from the public to assist in the welfare of the needy and the vulnerable”.

“I’ve directed the Controller and Accountant General to pay my next three months’ salary, i.e., April, May and June, into this fund. Let me also thank, from the bottom of my heart, the churches, financial institutions and individuals who have already made donations to help in this fight. God richly bless you”, the President said.