The federal government has extended the ban imposed on local and international flights by four weeks.
President Muhammadu Buhari had approved the extended flight ban on flights to check the spread of coronavirus.
At the briefing of the presidential task force on COVID-19 on Wednesday, Boss Mustapha, secretary to the government of the federation, said after due consultation, the federal government has decided to extend the flight ban by four weeks.
“Tomorrow marks the last day for the enforcement of the closure of Nigeria’s airspace to flights. We have assessed the situation in the aviation industry and have come to the conclusion that given the facts available to us and based on the advice of experts, the ban on all flights will be extended for an additional four weeks,” he said.
“The Honourable Minister of aviation will give you details during this briefing.”
He also pointed out some areas in transportation, he said,
“In view of the fact that public transportation is a major clustering area through which the virus can easily be transmitted, we call on the leadership of various transport unions to properly enlighten their members on the dangers associated with non-adherence to the COVID-19 containment guidelines. We also urge them to educate their members on the ban imposed on Inter-state travels.”
Mustapha appealed to Nigerians to comply with the guidelines of the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
He also acknowledged challenges people have been facing at banks, saying efforts were being made to address the situation.
“As we continue to push the frontiers of risk communication, I wish to appeal to all Nigerians to be vigilant and desist from taking undue risks,” he said.
“The PTF recognizes the challenges earlier encountered at the bank. We, however, assure you that the Central Bank of Nigeria, as well as the Bankers’ Committee, have put in place strategies that would reduce such re-occurrence.
“I, therefore plead with Nigerians to be patient and schedule their physical appearances at banks. On the other hand, I wish to repeat my call to the Banks to also quickly address issues related to difficulty with using their on-line platforms, especially re-validating expired ATM cards amongst others.”