By Shola Oshunkeye
President Mubhammadu Buhari, Monday evening, extended the restriction on movement of persons in Lagos and Ogun States, as well as the Federal Capital Territory, FCT for another 14 days starting from 11:59 p.m. on Monday, April 13, 2020.
The President conveyed the decision to Nigerians via a nationwide broadcast, saying, painful as it was, it remained the best way to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, especially in the wake of the community transmissions which the disease had graduated to.
The decision, he further explained, was the best option among the various offered by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.
Buhari reiterated that the administration’s two-fold approach to fighting the deadly coronavirus to a standstill remained in force. They are: “to protect the lives of our fellow Nigerians and residents living here and second, to preserve the livelihoods of workers and business owners.”
“With this in mind,” the President continued, “and having carefully considered the briefings and Report from the Presidential Task Force and the various options offered, it has become necessary to extend the current restriction of movement in Lagos and Ogun States as well as the FCT for another 14 days effective from 11:59 pm on Monday, 13th of April, 2020. I am therefore once again asking you all to work with Government in this fight.”
To underscore the grim implications of relaxing any of the measures deployed to fight the pandemic so far, the President cited the gloomy atmosphere that pervaded the world this Easter as Christians celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in their homes.
The war against COVID-19, the President continued, was not a joke. “”t is a matter of life and death,” he stressed. “Mosques in Makkah and Madina have been closed. The Pope celebrated Mass on an empty St. Peter’s Square. The famous Notre Dame cathedral in Paris held Easter Mass with less than 10 people. India, Italy and France are in complete lockdown. Other countries are in the process of following suit. We cannot be lax.”
Emphasizing that the previously issued guidelines on exempted services shall remain in force, Buhari regretted that the decision to extend the lockdown was a difficult one but that he was absolutely convinced that it was the right thing to do. The evidence, he stressed, was clear.
And “The repercussions of any premature end to the lockdown action are unimaginable.”
He empathized with the excruciating pains being experienced by Nigerians who depend on daily wage and who must go out for sustenance, such as traders, day-workers, artisans and manual workers.
To assuage the pains being borne by this group of Nigerians, Buhari said the palliatives that had been implemented in the past two weeks would be sustained. These include food distribution, cash transfers and loans repayment waivers “to ease the pains of our restrictive policies during this difficult time.”
In the same vein, the President announced that he had directed that the current social register being used for the palliatives be expand expanded “from 2.6 million households to 3.6 million households in the next two weeks.
“This means we will support an additional one million homes with our social investment programs. A technical committee is working on this and will submit a report to me by the end of this week.”
(Full text of the Presidential broadcast soon.)
