Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi has extended total lockdown in the state for six days and ordered a dusk to dawn curfew every day of the week till further notice as part of measures to contain the spread of the Coronavirus in the state.
In a live broadcast, Governor Fayemi banned inter state travel and vowed to prosecute any driver who violates the order while such person might forfeit the vehicle to Government.
He said anyone visiting the state compulsorily would be quarantined for fourteen days and the person would be responsible for his or her upkeep.
Dr Fayemi maintained that the business activities would resume in the state for only three days a week from the hours of seven o’clock in the morning to four o clock in the evening only on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays starting from May four, to allow Artisans fend for their families.
The Ekiti State Governor mandated every resident of the state to put on face marks and warned that any one caught flouting the order would be charged for endangering the lives of the public.
He said that all major markets in Ado-Ekiti should remaine closed, while the ban on social groups is still in force and ordered that Okada Riders should not carry more than a person, taxi three persons and tricycle two passengers.
Governor Fayemi advised the public to always observe the personal hygiene in order to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.
Meanwhile in the Bayelsa state counterpart, Bayelsa Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has announced a one-week stay-at-home for residents of the State following the index COVID-19 case reported by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Sunday night.
Senator Diri, who gave the directive in a state broadcast on Monday, said everyone except those on essential duties should remain at home with effect from midnight (Tuesday) in order to effectively contain the spread of the virus in the state.
The governor said at a News Conference at Government House, Yenagoa that one of the five test results received for the state was positive for COVID-19, saying it was the first confirmed case in Bayelsa.
Senator Diri described the patient as a 49-year-old female with a history of hypertension and diabetes, who presented with non-productive cough, headache, fever and chest pain within a week duration.
The governor noted that the patient, who is now clinically stable, was admitted at the Bayelsa Specialist Hospital where she was being managed for malaria and uncontrolled hypertension.
While noting that the patient had no travel history, stated that she had been evacuated to the isolation centre at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital in Okolobiri for further management but that she rejected the NCDC result.
The specialist hospital has, however, been closed and decontamination procedures have commenced.
The Governor, who is chairman of the state’s COVID-19 Taskforce, advocated regular and thorough hand washing under running water and the use of alcohol-based hand sanitisers.
He equally advised the people to continue to observe social distancing, practice good respiratory hygiene by covering the nose and mouth while coughing or sneezing and proper disposal of used tissue.
The governor also directed sick persons with symptoms such as fever, cough, difficulty in breathing to stay at home and notify relevant authorities immediately.
He gave two toll-free mobile lines 09010999972 and 09010999969 to call for enquiries.
He called on Bayelsans not to panic as the state government was on top of the situation even as he cautioned that they should not engage in spreading fake news or misinformation capable of causing panic.