Buhari. |
Full Speech of
President Muhammadu Buhari
ADDRESS
BY H.E. MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA ON THE
EXTENSION OF COVID- 19 PANDEMIC LOCKDOWN AT THE STATE HOUSE, ABUJA
MONDAY, 13TH APRIL, 2020
MONDAY, 13TH APRIL, 2020
1. Fellow Nigerians
2. In my address on
Sunday, 29th March, 2020, I asked the residents of Lagos and Ogun States as
well as the Federal Capital Territory to stay at home for an initial period of
fourteen days starting from Monday, 30th March 2020.
3. Many State Governments also introduced similar
restrictions.
4. As
your democratically elected leaders, we made this very difficult decision
knowing fully well it will severely disrupt your livelihoods and bring undue
hardship to you, your loved ones and your communities.
5. However, such
sacrifices are needed to limit the spread of COVID-19 in our country. They were
necessary to save lives.
6. Our objective was, and still remains, to contain
the spread of the Coronavirus and to provide space, time and resources for an
aggressive and collective action.
7. The level of compliance to the COVID-19 guidelines
issued has been generally good across the country. I wish to thank you all most
sincerely for the great sacrifice you are making for each other at this
critical time.
8. I will take this opportunity to recognise the
massive support from our traditional rulers, the Christian Association of
Nigeria (CAN) and the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA)
during this pandemic.
9. I also acknowledge
the support and contributions received from public spirited individuals, the
business community and our international partners and friends.
10. I must also thank the media houses, celebrities
and other public figures for the great work they are doing in sensitizing our
citizens on hygienic practices, social distancing and issues associated with
social gatherings.
11. As a result of the overwhelming support and
cooperation received, we were able to achieve a lot during these 14 days of
initial lockdown.
12. We implemented comprehensive public health
measures that intensified our case identification, testing, isolation and
contact tracing capabilities.
13. To date, we have identified 92% of all identified
contacts while doubling the number of testing laboratories in the country and
raising our testing capacity to 1,500 tests per day.
14. We also trained over 7,000 Healthcare workers on
infection prevention and control while deploying NCDC teams to 19 states of the
federation.
15. Lagos and Abuja today have the capacity to admit
some 1,000 patients each across several treatment centres.
16. Many State Governments have also made provisions
for isolation wards and treatment centres. We will also build similar centers
near our airports and land borders.
17. Using our resources and those provided through
donations, we will adequately equip and man these centres in the coming weeks.
Already, health care workers across all the treatment centers have been
provided with the personal protective equipment that they need to safely carry
out the care they provide.
18. Our hope and prayers are that we do not have to
use all these centres. But we will be ready for all eventualities.
19. At this point, I must recognise the incredible
work being done by our healthcare workers and volunteers across the country
especially in frontline areas of Lagos and Ogun States as well as the Federal
Capital Territory.
20. You are our heroes and as a nation, we will
forever remain grateful for your sacrifice during this very difficult time.
More measures to motivate our health care workers are being introduced which we
will announce in the coming weeks.
21. As a nation, we are on the right track to win the
fight against COVID-19.
22. However, I remain concerned about the increase in
number of confirmed cases and deaths being reported across the world and in Nigeria
specifically.
23. On 30th March 2020, when we started our lockdown
in conforming with medical and scientific advice, the total number of confirmed
cases across the world was over 780,000.
24. Yesterday, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases
globally was over one million, eight hundred and fifty thousand. This figure is
more than double in two weeks!
25. In the last fourteen days alone, over 70,000
people have died due to this disease.
26. In the same period, we have seen the health system
of even the most developed nations being overwhelmed by this virus.
27. Here in Nigeria, we had 131 confirmed cases of
COVID-19 in 12 States on 30th March 2020. We had two fatalities then.
28. This morning, Nigeria had 323 confirmed cases in
twenty States. Unfortunately we now have ten fatalities. Lagos State remains
the center and accounts for 54% of the confirmed cases in Nigeria. When
combined with the FCT, the two locations represent over 71% of the confirmed
cases in Nigeria.
29. Most of our efforts will continue to focus in
these two locations.
30. Majority of the confirmed cases in Lagos and the
FCT are individuals with recent international travel history or those that came
into contact with returnees from international trips.
31. By closing our airports and land borders and
putting strict conditions for seaport activities, we have reduced the impact of
external factors on our country. However, the increase in the number of States
with positive cases is alarming.
32. The National Centre for Disease Control has
informed me that, a large proportion of new infections are now occurring in our
communities, through person-to-person contacts. So we must pay attention to the
danger of close contact between person to person.
33. At this point, I will remind all Nigerians to
continue to take responsibility for the recommended measures to prevent
transmission, including maintaining physical distancing, good personal hygiene
and staying at home.
34. In addition, I have signed the Quarantine Order in
this regard and additional regulations to provide clarity in respect of the
control measures for the COVID-19 pandemic which will be released soon.
35. The public health response to COVID-19 is built on
our ability to detect, test and admit cases as well as trace all their
contacts. While I note some appreciable progress, we can achieve a lot more.
36. Today, the cessation of movement, physical
distancing measures and the prohibition of mass gatherings remain the most
efficient and effective way of reducing the transmission of the virus. By
sustaining these measures, combined with extensive testing and contact tracing,
we can take control and limit the spread of the disease.
37. Our approach to the virus remains in 2 steps –
First, to protect the lives of our fellow Nigerians and residents living here
and second, to preserve the livelihoods of workers and business owners.
38. With this in mind and having carefully considered
the briefings and Report from the Presidential Task Force and the various options
offered, it has become necessary to extend the current restriction of movement
in Lagos and Ogun States as well as the FCT for another 14 days effective from
11:59 pm on Monday, 13th of April, 2020. I am therefore once again asking you
all to work with Government in this fight.
39. This is not a joke. It is a matter of life and
death. Mosques in Makkah and Madina have been closed. The Pope celebrated Mass
on an empty St. Peter’s Square. The famous Notre Dame cathedral in Paris held
Easter Mass with less than 10 people. India, Italy and France are in complete
lockdown. Other countries are in the process of following suit. We can not be
lax.
40. The previously issued guidelines on exempted
services shall remain.
41. This is a difficult decision to take, but I am
convinced that this is the right decision. The evidence is clear.
42. The repercussions of any premature end to the
lockdown action are unimaginable.
43. We must not lose the gains achieved thus far. We
must not allow a rapid increase in community transmission. We must endure a
little longer.
44. I will therefore take this opportunity to urge you
all to notify the relevant authorities if you or your loved ones develop any
symptoms. I will also ask our health care professionals to redouble their efforts
to identify all suspected cases, bring them into care and prevent transmission
to others.
45. No country can afford the full impact of a
sustained restriction of movement on its economy. I am fully aware of the great
difficulties experienced especially by those who earn a daily wage such as
traders, day workers, artisans and manual workers.
46. For this group, their sustenance depends on their
ability to go out. Their livelihoods depend on them mingling with others and
about seeking work. But despite these realities we must not change the
restrictions.
47. In the past two weeks, we announced palliative
measures such as food distribution, cash transfers and loans repayment waivers
to ease the pains of our restrictive policies during this difficult time. These
palliatives will be sustained.
48. I have also directed that the current social
register be expanded from 2.6 million households to 3.6 million households in
the next two weeks. This means we will support an additional one million homes
with our social investment programs. A technical committee is working on this
and will submit a report to me by the end of this week.
49. The Security Agencies have risen to the challenges
posed by this unprecedented situation with gallantry and I commend them. I urge
them to continue to maintain utmost vigilance, firmness as well as restraint in
enforcing the restriction orders while not neglecting statutory security
responsibilities.
50. Fellow Nigerians, follow the instructions on
social distancing. The irresponsibility of the few can lead to the death of the
many. Your freedom ends where other people’s rights begin.
51. The response of our State Governors has been
particularly impressive, especially in aligning their policies and actions to
those of the Federal Government.
52. In the coming weeks, I want to assure you that the
Federal Government, through the Presidential Task Force, will do whatever it
takes to support you in this very difficult period. I have no doubt that, by
working together and carefully following the rules, we shall get over this
pandemic.
53. I must also thank the Legislative arm of
Government for all its support and donations in this very difficult period.
This collaboration is critical to the short and long-term success of all the
measures that we have instituted in response to the pandemic.
54. As a result of this pandemic, the world as we know
it has changed. The way we interact with each other, conduct our businesses and
trade, travel, educate our children and earn our livelihoods will be different.
55. To ensure our economy adapts to this new reality,
I am directing the Ministers of Industry, Trade and Investment, Communication
and Digital Economy, Science and Technology, Transportation, Aviation,
Interior, Health, Works and Housing, Labour and Employment and Education to
jointly develop a comprehensive policy for a “Nigerian economy functioning with
COVID-19”.
56. The Ministers will be supported by the
Presidential Economic Advisory Council and Economic Sustainability Committee in
executing this mandate.
57. I am also directing the Minister of Agriculture
and Rural Development, the National Security Adviser, the Vice Chairman,
National Food Security Council and the Chairman, Presidential Fertiliser
Initiative to work with the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to ensure the
impact of this pandemic on our 2020 farming season is minimized.
58. Finally, I want to thank the members of the
Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 for all their hard work so far. Indeed, the
patriotism shown in your work is exemplary and highly commendable.
59. Fellow Nigerians, I have no doubt that by working
together and carefully following the rules, we shall get over this pandemic and
emerge stronger in the end.
60. I thank you all for listening and may God bless
the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
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