Governor Adegboyega Oyetola of Osun State has granted amnesty to 34 inmates in the state and warned against civil disobedience of the lockdown of the state to mitigate the spread of Coronavirus.
The governor in a statement issued on Sunday by his Chief Press Secretary, Ismail Omipidan, said the amnesty was in line with the decision of the Federal Government to decongest custodial centres in the country to further contain the spread.
He disclosed that 17 of the 34 inmates were granted amnesty by Governor Oyetola, while the others were pardoned by the Federal Government.
The governor further noted that the inmates were considered for amnesty on grounds of old age, ill health, sentence of three years and above with less than six months left to serve, fine of less than N50, 000 and inmates who have spent 75 percent of their remaining sentences after remission and fine of less than N50, 000 with inability to pay among others.
Meanwhile, the state government said it considers defiance of the second stint of the state-wide 14-day lockdown as civil disobedience reminding residents that the State Emergency Regulation 2020 is in full force.
The government in a statement by the Secretary to the State Government, Prince Wole Oyebamiji stated that what currently obtains in Osun is not a curfew but a total lockdown saying that anyone who runs foul of it will face full weight of the law.