Presidential task force worried over poor observation of social distancing, use of face masks

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5 years ago

Boss Mustapha

On the first day of the easing of the lockdown of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Lagos and Ogun states, the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has said that Nigerians have ignored the plea to maintain social distancing and the wearing of face masks to curtail the spread of the virus.

Chairman of the task force and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, said during its briefing in Abuja on Monday that reports from across the country showed poor observance to the prescribed measures.

He expressed dismay over the chaotic situation at the banks and therefore called on the financial institutions to make their Automated Teller Machines (ATM) functional.

He said: “The PTF has been monitoring the level of compliance with some of the measures and early observations showed lack of compliance with social distancing and wearing of masks.

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“We note particularly the chaotic scenes around the banks and other financial institutions. We must reiterate that the danger of infection is not over and that individual actions will contribute to the success or failure of our measures.

“We urge citizens to minimise the risk of getting infected while trying to do transactions in the banks. We similarly urge the banks to ensure that their ATMs and online banking systems are in good order and stocked regularly to avoid convergence of customers in their premises.

“The PTF fully understands the desire of Nigerians to come out to continue their lives after five weeks of lockdown.

“States governments and security agencies have however been advised to enforce the measures rigidly and violators will be prosecuted.”

He reminded citizens that the easing up is in phases and those who are permitted to open have clearly been defined.

“Our admonition to Nigerians is that it is still desirable to stay at home if there is no compelling reason to go out and to comply with the measures always, whether at home or not,” Mustapha stated.

He said the PTF has also received reports on the level of compliance with the nationwide ban on inter-state movement.

While noting that the objective of the ban is to slow down the spread of virus across state boundaries, the SGF stressed that the determination of government to enforce the policy is not in doubt.