The federal government has called on state governments to beef up security at isolation centres to prevent the escape of those placed under observations.
The directive for security beef up followed reports of protests by some people at isolation centres over allegations of poor welfare and lack of medical attention by the government.
The PTF Chairman and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, at the task force press conference in Abuja said that “the PTF has become aware of a number of challenges associated with management of the isolation centres. These have manifested in the form of protests over welfare, absconding from centres and loud complaints based on the assumption by persons under observation, that drugs must be administered.
“The first two are unhealthy developments capable of undermining the containment measures and putting the lives of care managers and frontline workers at risk.
“Similarly, persons in isolation are encouraged to follow the direction and instructions of the experts during their stay as treatment to be administered would largely depend on the evaluation of the doctor.
“We however urge all state governments to continue to pay attention to the welfare of people in isolation and for security agencies to provide adequate security around such facilities to prevent escape.”
The SGF decried the disobedience of the guidelines issued for the relaxation of the lockdown, saying it was capable of undermining efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus.
The SGF said reports from various parts of the country on Wednesday indicated high level of non-compliance with the ban on inter-state travels with a high number of vehicles finding their way across many state borders despite the curfew/ border restrictions.
He also noted that the lack of respect for timing and the curfew resulted in heavy traffic gridlock where many motorists spent the night following the enforcement of the curfew.
Mustapha frowned on increasing level of abuse of exemption granted to vehicles conveying specified goods, stating that many had continued to hide passengers with the intention of transporting them across state boundaries.
He added that the continual transportation of Almajiris across state borders was still evident.
The SGF warned security agencies against compromising the guidelines and interstate curfew, directing state Police Commissioners to step up monitoring teams.
Members of the task force will on Friday (today) meet the Inspector-General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, and other top security chiefs in Abuja.
The meeting is expected to centre on how to ensuring proper enforcement of the various guidelines released by the task force as part of the gradual ease of the lockdown declared to curtail the spread of COVID-19.
The National Coordinator of the PTF, Dr Sani Aliyu, dropped the hint on Thursday at the daily briefing of the task force.
The task Force also issued new guidelines for small and medium enterprises to reopen while also tackling the coronavirus pandemic.
These include staggering work hours and educating employees on symptoms and response.
The Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, who spoke during the daily PTF briefing in Abuja on Thursday, stated that COVID-19 had had hugely impacted the economy of the country.
Ihekweazu said the economic impact, inadvertently, also had an effect on health “because if people are not able to work, they are not able to earn a living and they are not able to fulfill all their health needs.”
The NCDC boss said, “So, we have recently published new guidelines for businesses and employers in Nigeria. This can be accessed on covid19.ncdc.gov.ng. These guidelines offer specific recommendations to businesses on how to exist safely in their own sectors.”
