The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, under the aegis of Lagos State Government, has sealed and revoked the operating license of Queens Park Event Centre, Oniru, due to the contravention of COVID-19 protocols set by the state to curb the spread of the virus.
This disclosure was seen by Nairametrics in a statement issued by Gawat Jubril, the Senior Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on New Media today, 27 December 2020.
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Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Pharm. Uzamat Akinbile Yusuf, disclosed that the step to withdraw the license was taken in the best interest of the State and its citizens – as the state, which is the epicentre of the pandemic in Nigeria, continues to record cases of COVID-19 infections.
The Commissioner called on other event centres and venue owners to comply with the Governments laid down directives, or risk losing their operating licenses.
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She reiterated that the fight against the virus can only be successful if all Nigerians follow the laid down public health and safety protocols and called on Lagosians to take responsibility and co-operate with the government to effectively curtail the spread of the virus.
Mr. Lanre Mojola, the Director-General, Lagos State Safety Commission, who was also quoted in the statement emphasized why it became necessary to seal and revoke the operating license of the event centre.
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He said the actions of the operators of the event centre was offensive, as it contravened all safety protocols laid down by the State, hence it became imperative to take such steps, following an event that was held at the venue on 26 December.
The DG also issued a stern warning to all other event centers and venue owners, who continue to flout safety protocols in the State, emphasizing that failure to comply with these protocols would lead to the revocation of the operating license of these business entities in the State.
According to him, the Commission has begun a legal process against some recalcitrant business owners who removed the government seal and continued operations.
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What you should know
- In a bid to curb the spread of the virus in the state, Lagos state government has taken stern actions which have affected the operations of key relaxation hubs.
- According to a recent report by Nairametrics, Nigeria continues to record significant increases in COVID-19 infections, as the latest statistics provided by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) revealed that Nigeria has 83,576 confirmed cases as of 26 December 2020.
- The data by NCDC revealed that 829 new confirmed cases and 1 death were recorded in Nigeria on the 26th of December after the centre carried out a total daily test of 13,000 samples across the country.
- Recall that about a week ago, Nairametrics reported that the Lagos State special task force during an operation in the early hours of Sunday, December 20, 2020, shut down Cubana nightclub in the Ikeja GRA area and other facilities for disobeying the State’s ban on the activities of nightclubs.
