Education minister says schools remain shut as Buhari extends lockdown in Lagos, others

Olabisi Deji-Folutile

Education Minister Adamu Adamu has said that all schools in Nigeria remain shut as President Muhammadu Buhari extends the lockdown of Lagos, Ogun states and the Federal Capital Territory by 14 days.

Recall that the president first ordered a two-week lockdown of the states and the FCT on March 30 to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

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The Director of Press in the Ministry of Education, Ben Goong, said the minister had not directed the reopening of schools contrary to a purported press release by the minister to that effect. The minister therefore urged all stakeholders to stay at home and stay safe.

President Buhari in a nationwide broadcast on Monday evening had explained that locking down the two states and the nation’s capital was a needed sacrifice to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria, adding that he decided to extend the lockdown to ensure that the disease which is now being transmitted within communities is checked.

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The President 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.”

So far, a total of 323 cases had been confirmed in the country with 91 patients discharged and 10 deaths recorded.