The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced the single highest number of COVID-19 cases even as Lagos, Ogun and Federal Capital Territory gets ready to reopen.
The 196 cases announced by the Centre for Disease Control is one more than the 195 announced on Tuesday suggesting that lifting a lockdown might have come too early.
The NCDC also reported more discharged cases and more deaths on Wednesday, taking the total number of discharged persons to 307 and deaths to 51, seven more than the 44 reported on Tuesday.
“196 new cases of COVID-19 reported; 87-Lagos, 24-Kano, 18-Gombe, 17-Kaduna, 16-FCT, 10-Katsina, 8-Sokoto, 7-Edo, 6-Borno, 1-Yobe, 1-Ebonyi and 1-Adamawa.
“As at 11:55pm 29th April- 1728 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in Nigeria. With 307 patients discharged and 51 deaths.
Meanwhile, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has partially lifted the lockdown in Lagos following President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive to do so.
All residents have been mandated to wear masks and gloves especially when using public transportation while schools, churches and mosques will not reopen.
He said, “There will be an overnight curfew from 8pm to 6am, except for essential services. This means that from the hours of 8pm to 6am we expect all Lagosians to stay in their homes.
“Furthermore, there is a ban on interstate travel at this time. This means that no persons will be allowed in or out of Lagos until further notice, except for those delivering essential goods and services. And by this, we mean food items, petroleum products, newspapers, and essential manufactured goods.
Sanwo-Olu said according to the President, “Partial and controlled interstate movement of goods and services will be allowed for the movement of goods and services from producers to consumers.”
“Lagos State will be very strict in the implementation of this directive. As a first step, I am directing that vehicles carrying food and agricultural produce into Lagos from any part of the country cannot have more than 7 passengers on board. The same applies when these vehicles are leaving the state.
“We are compelled to issue this directive because we have in recent weeks seen attempts to conceal people in trucks and other vehicles carrying essential items, with the aim of sneaking them into or out of the State.
Sanwo-Olu said Lagos state continues to be the epicentre of COVID-19 in Nigeria.
At the time of his press briefing Lagos state total number of confirmed cases 844 but now stands 931.
Read Governor Sanwo-Olu’s speech here
