The Lagos State government has asked churches, mosques, and other places of worship to enforce the existing COVID-19 protocols amid the rising cases reported recently in the state.
It asked them to ensure all gatherings must not exceed two hours with attendance not more than 50 per cent of the maximum capacity of the venue.
The state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, issued the directives in a statement personally signed by him on Friday.
He also declared that concerts, carnivals and street parties have banned in all parts of the state until further notice.
According to the governor, night clubs have not been allowed to open yet and all night clubs in the state should be shut down indefinitely with immediate effect.
He explained that the directives became important as all local governments in Lagos have begun to record an increase in COVID-19 cases.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, however, noted that the situation was not peculiar to Lagos alone, noting that the entire country was also seeing a rise in the numbers of confirmed cases of COVID-19.
“Of every 100 tests that we now perform, an average of 10 turn out to be positive. This is an increase from the five per hundred recorded in September, but lower than our peak in August which was between 20 and 30 per hundred.
“This suggests the existence of active community transmission and represents the very likely possibility of the emergence of the second wave in Lagos State,” he said.
The governor added, “This second wave calls for a full re-awakening of caution and precaution. The complacency that crept in over the last few months as a result of our early interventions when cases started to decline from our peak in August, must now give way to an abundance of vigilance.”
As part of public health directives, he ordered the closure of all public and private schools in Lagos indefinitely and asked all public servants from Grade Level 14 and below to work from home for the next 14 days starting from Monday next week – in the first instance.
While Governor Sanwo-Olu noted that emergency workers and first responders were exempted, he stated that the 12am to 4am curfew imposed by the Federal Government remained in place.
He also directed that guests and service providers at any event with high temperature (above 37.5 degrees) should be politely turned back and referred to paramedics or the emergency response team.
