Covid: FG Lifts 12 Midnight to 4am Nationwide Curfew

*Removes restriction on number of persons attending religious gathering

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The federal government has lifted the nationwide curfew from 12 midnight to 4 a.m. imposed in 2019 to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

The new policy was announced Wednesday by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 (PSC) on the implementation guidelines for easing COVID-19 restrictions across different national activities.

The PSC said the decision to review the country’s COVID-19 response was occasioned by the declining number of cases, reduced risk of importation of new variants as well as the availability of vaccines and increasing number of people vaccinated in Nigeria and globally.

The guidelines said that there would no longer be formal restrictions on movement within the country, while the advisory limiting Nigerians to essential travels only has also been lifted.
It, however, advised the public to, given the risks, refrain from non-essential movement and comply with non-pharmaceutical interventions guidelines such as the mandatory use of
facemasks in public.

The PSC also announced the removal of limitation on air travels – both domestic and international flights; saying travellers must abide by all existing protocols including the use of face mask while on board and taking personal precaution measures.

In addition, the PSC said the limitation on number of persons and 50 per cent limit on persons attending religious gathering has been lifted, although it advised the continued use of face masks in all indoor religious gathering, while asking congregants to take personal responsibility and take appropriate personal safety protection measures.

More to come…