The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 has lifted the ban on religious gatherings based on guidelines and protocols and reduced the curfew from 10pm – 4am.
Chairman of the Committee and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, made the announcement on Monday during the regular briefing.
The National Coordinator of the PTF, Dr Sani Aliyu also announced on Monday at the daily briefing of the task force in Abuja, the nation’s capital that the curfew has been further reduced from 10pm – 4am.
He said “Effective from tomorrow, Tuesday, June 2, 2020, the easing of the lockdown will be characterised by the following: The nationwide curfew will remain in place but the timing of this will be reduced to 10pm-4am.”
“And just to clarify, the purpose of the curfew is to limit social interactions and, therefore, reduce the risk of transmission of the virus,” he added.
Dr Aliyu echoed that persons who are on essential duty remain exempted from the curfew as the nation moves into the second phase of the gradual easing of the COVID-19 lockdown.
He stated that such persons include healthcare and media services providers, as well as those working in the nation’s critical sectors.
The PTF national coordinator also announced the reopening of the nation’s financial sectors, adding that they would be fully operational.
He said, “There will be full opening of financial sectors, with banks now allowed to operate normal working hours – five days a week.
“The mass gathering of 20 people outside a workplace or places of worship remains prohibited.”
“There will be controlled access to markets and locations of economic activities, but local authorities will continue to provide guidance on opening times,” Dr Aliyu added.
He explained that the restricted opening of places of worship would be based on the protocols of the respective state governments.
According to the PTF national coordinator, this will be done with strict guidelines on physical distancing and other non-pharmaceutical interventions and would apply to regular church and mosque services only.
On movement from one state to the other, he said, “All interstate travels by individuals remain prohibited except for essential travel and the movement of goods and services.
“Just to make it clear, all restrictions on the free movement of goods and services are not removed in this phase.”
