FG may stop interstate, inter-town travels – Lai Mohammed

BY EMEKA EJERE

The Federal Government is considering stopping inter-state and inter-town travels in the country, Minister of Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, has said.

Mohammed in a statement on Thursday said the nation’s strategy at containing the pandemic is working, adding that the country still has a long way to go.

The minister noted that bold measures have been taken and more steps of such nature need to be taken to ensure that Nigeria beats the virus, stressing that he does not mean to spread panic.

Lai Mohammed’s communique partially read:

“Gentlemen, I don’t intend to sound apocalyptic. But the truth is that time is running out. If we don’t urgently and more aggressively enforce the measures I have just listed, we have a short window within which to stop this pandemic or face an explosion in terms of the
cases. We cannot afford to be complacent.

“In view of this, we are considering tougher measures to enforce compliance, stop the exportation of the disease to states that do not have it and minimize spread. Possible measures include:

“Stopping inter-state/inter-town travels, except for essential services.

“Closing all motor parks and inter-state rail stations. Already, all
train movements nationwide have been stopped.

“Using fire fighting and other adaptable vehicles and personnel to fumigate
cities and towns”.

The minister who had earlier told Nigerians to brace up for tougher measures in the efforts to curtail the spread of the coronavirus pandemic told newsmen that the government knows its priorities and challenges.

He hailed the state governments that have taken bold measures to ensure that people are safe, including the closure of markets and the prohibition of large congregations.

Mr Mohammed, however, noted that the Federal Government is determined to be more aggressive in enforcing the measures aimed at containing the spread of the virus.

Below is a full statement by the minister for information and culture.

TEXT OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE HON MINISTER OF
INFORMATION AND CULTURE, ALHAJI LAI MOHAMMED, IN ABUJA ON THURSDAY, 25 MARCH 2020

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Good afternoon gentlemen, and welcome to this press conference, called
to update you on the measures being taken by the Federal Government to
tackle the Coronavirus pandemic.

2. I want to say straight away that our strategy at containing this
   pandemic is working, but we still have a long way to go. We know our
   priorities and we know our challenges. We have taken very bold
   measures in stopping international flights into the country, and we
   hail the state governments that have take equally bold measures in
   their states, which include the closure of markets and the prohibition
   of large congregations.
3. However, we are determined to be more aggressive in enforcing the
   measures aimed at containing the spread of the virus, such as:
   – Social distancing
   – Contact tracing
   – Testing
   – Isolation of suspected cases
   – And ensuring that our messaging gets down to the grassroots
4. Gentlemen, I don’t intend to sound apocalyptic. But the truth is
   that time is running out. If we don’t urgently and more aggressively
   enforce the measures I have just listed, we have a short window within
   which to stop this pandemic or face an explosion in terms of the
   cases. We cannot afford to be complacent.
5. In view of this, we are considering tougher measures to enforce
   compliance, stop the exportation of the disease to states that do not
   have it and minimize spread. Possible measures include:
   – Stopping inter-state/inter-town travels, except for essential services
   – Closing all motor parks and inter-state rail stations. Already, all
   train movements nationwide have been stopped.
   – Using fire fighting and other adaptable vehicles and personnel to fumigate
   cities and towns.
   We will be considering and announcing new measures from time to time,
   but rest assured that whatever decisions we take will be in the best
   interest of Nigerians.
6. Let me announce that we have received donated safety and test
   kits from the Jack Ma Foundation in China. The supplies are:
   – 100,000 Face Masks
   – 1,000 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
   – 20,000 test kits
   The face masks and the PPE will be distributed to the front-line
   health workers while the test kits will be shared among the five test
   laboratories.
7. We are also taking measures to increase the number of bed spaces
   for isolation of suspects. The facilities we have now include the
   40-bed DSS Hotel, the 60-bed Medical Centre in Zuba and the 160-bed
   Women Development Centre in Abuja, We are still looking at other
   facilities within the Federal Capital Territory.
8. As we said during our last press conference, contact tracing is
   very critical to stopping the spread of the virus. Today, we have 51
   cases covering 8 states:
   Lagos – 32
   FCT – 10
   Ogun – 3
   Ekiti – 1
   Edo – 1
   Bauchi – 1
   Osun – 1
   Oyo – 1
   Rivers – 1
   We have 4,370 people of interest whom we are
   tracing. We urge those who have had contact with suspected cases to
   immediately report to the authorities. We urge Nigerians to support
   the authorities in this regard. We are on the verge of reaching the
   level of community spread. We must stop this immediately or we will
   record exponential cases in the days ahead. There is no better way to
   say this.
9. Let me say, without mincing words, that we are not getting the
   kind of cooperation that this moment deserves from Nigerians. Many are
   busy engaging in meaningless criticisms instead of complying with the
   stipulated directives to keep people safe. Some Nigerians who flew
   into the country from overseas filled wrong addresses and phone
   numbers in their forms, making it difficult to trace them when the
   need arises. Some Nigerians defied orders to stay away from large
   gatherings while some religious leaders willfully flouted the
   directives to ensure social distancing. The government is doing its
   best but we need the citizens to do their best too. We have now gone past
   the stage of persuasion. It’s time for strong enforcement.
10. This brings me to the rising instances of fake news associated
    with coronavirus. The epidemic of fake news is now competing with the
    pandemic of coronavirus, and this is not helping the fight against the
    disease. Instances of such fake news include
    – That there are only two ventilators in Abuja, out of which one has
    been commandeered for a top government official
    – That a British Airways Flight was due to land in Nigeria on
    Wednesday despite the closure of all international airports.
    – That President Muhammadu Buhari has been coughing and is now on ventilator.
    Fake. Fake. Fake. It’s all fake news.
11. A section of the traditional media has also been engaging in
    scaremongering and irresponsible reporting on the disease. It is wrong
    to speculate on those who are positive or negative for coronavirus
    without any empirical information. In any case, being positive to
    coronavirus is not a death sentence, as we can see around the world.
    There is no need for the kind of scaremongering we are seeing in a
    section of the
    media. The danger is that this scaremongering can even discourage some
    who may want to come forward for testing. We therefore wish to appeal
    to the media to be more circumspect in their reporting.
12. Gentlemen, we have noted the decision of at least five domestic
    airlines – Air Peace, Aero and Azman, Dana and Arik – to suspend their flight
    operations. The suspension is a boost for the efforts of the
    government to check the spread of the pandemic. Some of the airlines have also
    announced one form of support or another for the government’s efforts
    to tackle the
    pandemic. This is very commendable. We are aware of more private sector support
    to the FG and will be announcing this after full compilation. We seek
    the support and
    cooperation of more capable individuals and organizations in order to
    defeat this pandemic.
13. Finally, we appeal to Nigerians not to panic. It is said that
    panic is our greatest enemy. The Federal Government is determined to
    work with the good people of Nigeria to defeat Covid-19. And defeat
    the disease we will.
14. I thank you, gentlemen, for your kind attention. I will now take
    your questions