The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has extended the lockdown order in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun State in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus in Nigeria.
He announced the extension during a nationwide broadcast on Monday.
He extended the lockdown by 14 days.
Buhari said the initial lockdown helped Nigeria in its fight against the coronavirus.
He also said that the decision to lockdown states and the FCT was a difficult one for his regime.
He said, “With this in mind 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.
“This is not a joke. It is a matter of life and death. 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.”
The initial lockdown elapsed today (Monday).
As of 09:10 pm on Monday, 323 confirmed cases of #COVID-19 have been reported in Nigeria.
Of the 323 cases, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said 85 patients have been discharged while 10 died.