The Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 on Monday announced the restoration of a nationwide curfew, which had earlier been introduced to curtail the spread of the virus.
The 12 am -4 am curfew starts from midnight Monday, May 10, 2021, while clubs, gyms, and others would remain closed from midnight of Tuesday till further notice.
The committee also announced that gatherings of religious groups and weddings among others have been reduced to 50 percent attendance, while official engagements, meetings, and conferences should continue to hold virtually.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF and Chairman of the PSC, Mr Boss Mustapha told journalists in Abuja on Monday that the committee had also considered other measures to be taken to reduce the likely impact of the variants of concern, should they get imported into Nigeria.
“Accordingly, the PSC has produced a new Implementation Guidelines being Phase IV of our Eased restrictions of COVID-19 Lockdown in the Country,” he said.
“This step has become compelling in view of the fragile state of our health systems, the disruption to the vaccines delivery and the lack of compliance with the extant public health measures and social measures contained in the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Health Protection Regulations 2021.
“The PSC has therefore considered it imperative to re-institute the various public health measures that were put in place under the Health Protection Regulations.
“In taking this step, the PSC requests the State Governments to please step up to play lead roles in the area of enforcement and sanctions. Similarly, our appeal goes to traditional, religious, and community leaders to take up more ownership and responsibility for risk communication and community engagement on the virulent nature of the pandemic concerns over the variants of concern and the need for compliance”, the SGF stated.
Mustapha said the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government has fixed the cost of COVID-19 testing, whether PCR or otherwise, at $50 (Fifty US Dollars) at all Points of Entry with effect from 17th May 2021. The decision is aimed at easing travel and trade among citizens of ECOWAS States travelling within the region, he explained.
PSC’s Head of Technical Secretariat, Dr Mukhtar Mohammed said persons without facemasks will no longer be allowed into government institutions while it directed security agencies to enforce the use of such masks and other non-pharmaceutical interventions in the transportation sector.
He explained that most government meetings are also now held virtually while only essential international travels are encouraged and that all protocols must be adhered to. Mohammed was however emphatic that there are no restrictions on intra-state travels.
“The PSC continues to reinforce the surveillance system at the country’s points of entry. While our vaccine rollout has begun, there is a shortage in global supplies affected by the current situation in India.
