From Bolaji Ogundele and Frank Ikpefan, Abuja
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The fight to free Nigeria of coronavirus is far from over, the Federal Government said on Monday.
It is worried about the increase of COVID-19 cases, as well as inter-state movement.
The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 expressed regret that social distancing was not observed during the burial of Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, on Saturday at the Gudu Cemetery, Abuja.
Kyari died of coronavirus complications on Friday.
It admitted that those at the burial failed to observe guidelines on crowd control and tendered an apology.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) who is also PTF Chairman, Mr Boss Mustapha, urged Nigerians to support efforts to tackle the pandemic.
Speaking during the PTF daily briefing in Abuja, he said: “Given the increase in the number of confirmed cases in the last week, the PTF remains conscious of the fact that we are far from the end of this outbreak in Nigeria.
“We, therefore, must focus even more vigorously on our strategy of increasing testing, isolating confirmed cases, following up with contacts of cases and managing confirmed cases to recovery.
“The significant increase in the number of cases and distribution across states underscore the importance of remaining focused as citizens and as a nation because of the enormity of the challenges ahead.
“This is the time for all hands to be on deck so that the PTF can improve on its delivery.
“We must all come together because we face a common enemy and potential risk. We must flatten the curve at all cost and restore our country to full activity.”
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Mustapha bemoaned the heavy toll the outbreak is taking on Nigerians and lives already lost, including Kyari, who he said had spurred the national efforts to tackle the pandemic.
On Sunday, the country recorded 83 cases – 70 of them in Lagos – the biggest daily figure so far since the index case on February 27.
On the failure to manage the crowd at the burial, the SGF said: “The PTF recognises, regrettably, the unintentional violation of the principles and protocols that form the core of our message to Nigerians at the funeral of the late Chief of Staff.
“These principles for emphasis include the guidance provided on mass gatherings, social distancing, personal hygiene and restriction of movements.
“Lessons have been learnt and appropriate measures have been taken to close all gaps.
“We assure all Nigerians of their safety and the determination of the PTF to combat the pandemic.”
PTF National Coordinator, Dr Sani Aliyu said the Federal Government was concerned about inter-state movement.
“We are concerned about the movement of persons across state borders. We appeal to governors to look into this in order to check the spread of the virus,” he said.
He also apologised for the flaws at Kyari’s burial, adding that lessons had been learned from the situation.
He said: “The PTF will like to acknowledge and apologise for the mistakes that were made regarding the burial of the late Chief of Staff.
“Crowd control failed. It was not intentional. It was a crowd control issue. No privileges were given.
“The PTF is committed to making sure as we move forward that necessary steps are taken so that this sort of episode does not happen again.
“We have learned from this and we will ensure that future events are adequately regulated and follow the task force’s protocols.”
According to Dr Aliyu, the late Kyari’s body was properly prepared for burial in line with NCDC guidelines and the Islamic faith.
He added that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had also explained that such corpses pose minimal risk.
“As stated clearly by the WHO guidelines, ‘except in cases of viral haemorrhagic fever and cholera, dead bodies are generally not infectious.
“‘To date, there’s no evidence of persons having become infected from exposure to the bodies of persons who had died of COVID-19′.
“Therefore, we will like to further assure the public that we will continue to follow the guidelines and protocols we had produced.
“The NCDC guidelines are very much reflecting the WHO guidelines.
“We’ll also like to assure the public that the task force takes its Presidential mandate seriously and is committed to executing it to the best of its ability.
“We ask for the public to continue holding us accountable for our actions.
“We read your comments on social media. We listen to you and also acknowledge the issues that might arise.
“Please continue to do so. It is the only way we can continue to improve and fight this big challenges we have.”
On why PTF members did not go on self-isolation after the burial, Dr Aliyu said it was not necessary.
“In terms of self-isolation, we have clear-cut guidelines for isolation: if you have symptoms consistent with COVID-19, we’ll have to isolate you when we test.
“If you have had contact with a case of COVID-19, we’ll isolate you, if you are coming from an area that is of high prevalence, we will isolate you.
“So, these guidelines in terms of self-isolation and quarantine are very clear,” he explained.
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