COVID-19: PTF seeks Buhari’s approval to open schools, churches, mosques, others.
The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 on Sunday submitted parts of its recommendations on partial reopening of schools, places of worships and some additional businesses for possible consideration by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Chairman of the PTF, who is also the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, made this known to State House correspondents at the end of a closed door meeting with President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to Mustapha, the PTF has no problem with state governments that ordered reopening of places of worships in view of the power given to the states to do so by the constitution, adding that the states are sub-nationals.
He said: “That’s part of what we have considered in its totality.
“We will await Mr. President on that.
“Once I receive his approval, going forward, to certain recommendations we have put in place, we will know how that would happen.
“The issue of easing up, you know we are in the first phase.
“We had an extension of two weeks for the first phase.
“The next phase should be the second phase and along with that will come in a lot of recommendations, which we expect Mr. President to consider.
“So, the issues of places of worships, the issues of schools, the issues of some certain businesses that were not opened hitherto are part of the packages that we have looked at.
“We have made the appropriate recommendations, but you know that Mr. President is the only one that can take decisions in respect of that.
“In the framework, the states are sub-nationals, they have their own responsibilities too.
“So, it is in the exercise of those responsibilities that they had meetings with those religious bodies and agreed on the guidelines and protocols on how they open up, but in the framework of the national response, we are taking that into consideration.”
On whether Nigeria is winning the fight against COVID-19, considering the rate of infections, Mustapha said: “We are winning.
“As a matter of fact, you juxtapose the rate of cases with our fatality rate, which is basically about three per cent.
“In other countries and other climes, it’s over 10 per cent.
