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LAGOS, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria's Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama on Monday denied testing positive for COVID-19.

In a statement reaching Xinhua in Lagos, Nigeria's economic hub, the minister described the media report alleging that he has contracted the virus as fabricated and malicious.

He said as a member of the presidential taskforce on COVID-19, himself and other members were recently tested and all found to be negative.

The authors of this act are well known as is their motive to embarrass and spread alarm and panic during a national emergency, the minister said.