Emmanuel Adigwe
The Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, has extended the lockdown in the state due to the coronavirus pandemic by two weeks stressing that churches and mosques and schools would remain closed for another two weeks in the state.
Abiodun announced this on Friday evening in a statement issued to the press by his Chief Press Secretary, Kunle Somorin.
The governor highlighted that the Ogun border Local Government has recorded the highest number of cases in the country.
He said: “This high level of prevalence may also be obtainable in other Local Governments as we ramp up testing. All this emphasises the need for us to exercise a high level of restraint as the State can neither afford more fatalities nor allow the rate of sickness to outnumber the capacity to manage the sick.
“Consequently, we are extending our current Phase of eased restrictions for another two weeks. As usual, we will continuously review and modify the guidelines in response to data from the field and expert opinions.”
Speaking on the Federal Government’s decision to lift the ban on interstate travels, the governor added that “the State will monitor this development to determine its impact on the COVID-19 situation and will not hesitate to make appropriate adjustments, in consultation with the federal government”.
He also added that “Schools are to remain shut. A committee has been set up to engage all stakeholders including public and private school owners – and develop guidelines for a safe reopening of our schools, especially to allow certificate classes to resume and write their examinations”.
This came after the Management of the Federal College of Education, Osiele, Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Friday, shut down the institution for two weeks after a health worker died from COVID-19 complications in the institution.
The institution’s Registrar, Adedayo Adebayo who disclosed this in a statement in Abeokuta, two other workers at the college’s medical centre had also contracted the virus.