The Presidency has stated that it is worried that Nigerians are not complying with the new Protective Health regulations signed in an Executive Order by the President which makes mask-wearing and observation of social distancing in public mandatory.
This was disclosed in a social media statement by Presidential media aide Garba Shehu on Sunday.
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He said:
- The Presidency is worried by reports of non-compliance with just signed Executive Order that makes mask-wearing and observation of social distancing in the public mandatory, appealing to Nigerians to give their maximum cooperation for the success of the policy.
- The Presidency appeals to State Governments, traditional rulers and religious leaders to play active roles in the sensitization and enforcement of the Executive Order.
- To achieve this, COVID-19 task forces and committees should persuade members of the public to cooperate with the government in achieving compliance and avoid crude methods that may create resistance and resentment, thereby defeating the primary goal of the Executive Order.
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Shehu added that the FG is reluctant to enter into another lockdown and continues to emphasize the non-pharmaceutical measures, citing that the way to avert lockdowns is to observe these measures as put in place by the Presidential Task Force.
“Though vaccine availability is within reach, the propensity of the public for noncompliance weakens the fight against the virus,” Shehu said.
He urged Nigerians to know that the virus is also a threat to the Nigerian economy and “Protecting public health is one of the sacred duties of any responsible government and the administration will not abdicate that responsibility.”
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What you should know
- Recall Nairametrics reported that President Buhari signed the COVID-19 Health Protection Regulations 2021 policy, citing powers conferred to the Presidency, by Section 4 of the Quarantine Act, Cap. Q2 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2010.