Sani Aliyu, the national coordinator of the presidential task force (PTF) on COVID-19, has revealed that the risk of contracting Coronavirus is now higher than before in Nigeria.
Aliyu made this disclosure during a PTF briefing in Abuja on Thursday, June 18, attributing it to the relaxation of the lockdown order in different states across the country.
He expressed the PTF’s concern about compliance and the flouting of guidelines, emphasizing the need for containment of COVID-19 through data-driven medical advisories.
He emphasized, “The fact that we are receiving many reports on the flouting of the guidelines, the hint by individuals, groups and organisations is simply unacceptable… Your risk of acquiring COVID-19 because of the numbers we have now is more than three, four weeks or five weeks ago when we had a lockdown, so there really isn’t any room or relaxation at this point.”
Additionally, the PTF Coordinator urged Nigerians to observe all health guidelines and stated that the lockdown was relaxed to sustain the livelihood of those who depend on daily income for survival.
“It wasn’t because COVID-19 has gone and it wasn’t because we should be more relaxed in terms of our prevention measures,” Aliyu emphasized.
He disclosed that the federal government is collaborating with security agencies to enforce compulsory adherence to the COVID-19 guidelines, as the PTF “will not sit back and allow public safety to be endangered by a few.”