COVID-19: Kano issues guidelines on two weeks extension of lockdown

Kano state government has released operational guidelines for the controlled easing of the pandemic-induced restriction imposed by the Federal Government.

The State Government said the guideline is a way of fine-tuning the recently extended lockdown of the state announced by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 for another two weeks,

The state commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, who made the revelation in a statement on Monday, said the government is fully aware of the difficult but necessary hardship people have to pass through which informed the need for controlled enforcement.

According to the statement, the Commissioner said after series of meetings with key health experts, the Ulama and other stakeholders, the state government adopted some measures that will further bring relief to the populace, with the partial lift on the lockdown on three days, that is, Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 10:00am and 2:00 pm with total relief of 12 hours per week as earlier recommended by the Presidential Task Force.

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The commissioner said in the statement that , Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has directed the state Hisbah Board to hold a meeting with Imams and deploy its personnel to Friday (Jumu’at mosques) across the state to ensure that worshipers comply with personal hygiene through maintaining social distancing, hand washing with soap, use of hand sanitizers and face masks.

‘’The government considers it convenient to allow the conduct of Eid Prayers on Sallah day in all the five Emirates in the state during which restriction of movement has been lifted from 6:00am to 2:00 pm under strict observance of safety and prevention protocols, ‘’said the statement.

He, however, said that there will be no Sallah festivities in all the Emirates including the visit to Gidan Shettima, Hawan Daushe, Hawan Nassarawa, and Hawan Dorayi in Kano and all other similar traditional Sallah celebrations in the four other Emirates.

The statement also announced the formation of a committee on the distribution of face masks and sanitation materials to Jumu’at mosques to be chaired by the commissioner for environment, Dr. Kabir Ibrahim Getso.

Other members of the committee are Hon. Commissioners for local government, religious affairs and that of information; Prof. Ibrahim Mu’azzam Maibushra, Prof. Muhammad Tabi’u, Dr. Awwalu Kawu, Engr. Sa’idu Muhammad, Sarkin Yarabawa, Oba Abdullahi Salihu Olowo, Dr. Bala Muhammad, state ALGON chairman, Managing Directors of REMASAB and KAROTA, Commander General, Hisbah Board and its Chairman, Sheikh Shehi Maihula.

The ethnic nationalities in the state will also constitute a similar committee to ensure the distribution of sanitation materials and the observance of Covid-19 protocol in their various churches.