Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, is expected to announce the next phase of ease of lockdown on Monday, May 18, which marks end end of the first phase of the gradual easing of the lockdown.
This was disclosed by the National Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Sani Aliyu, when featuring on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics.
In the Sunday broadcast, Aliyu, while giving an update on the progress made so far, said: “We have given our recommendations to the President and we will wait for his decision on the next phase of ease of lockdown tomorrow.
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“We have been monitoring quite closely the obedience to the ease of lockdown guidelines. We don’t know how long this pandemic will last. We are trying to save lives and at the same time, balance it up with the economy. No country on earth can afford a lockdown for a prolonged period of time. It will be dangerous to the economy.
“We have made substantial progress in the fight against COVID-19. We have increased bed spaces in isolation centres from 3,000 to 5,000.”
Buhari had on May 4, which would be exactly two weeks on Monday, relaxed the lockdown, and imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on the nation, with a ban on inter-state movements, compulsory use of face masks, among others for a two-weeks period, while he ordered the resumption of civil servants on Grade Level 14 and above, who were told to resume work three times a week.
