President Mhammadu Buhari has on Monday signed the Covid-19 Regulations 2020, declaring the pandemic a dangerous infectious disease and legalizing lockdown of activities in FCT, Lagos and Ogun States in a bid to curb the spread of the disease.
The signing of the regulations is within the powers of the President in line with the Quarantine Act (CAP Q2 LFN 2004). Also, the regulations states the directives, enforcement as well as organisations exempted from the lockdown with penalties for those who go against the regulations during the set lockdown period.
In a statement by Femi Adesina, the President's Special Adviser on Media and Publicity said, " In exercise of the powers conferred on him by Sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Quarantine Act (CAP Q2 LFN 2004), and all other powers enabling him in that behalf, President Muhammadu Buhari, Monday, signed the Covid-19 Regulations, 2020, which declared Covid-19 a dangerous infectious disease.
"The Regulations, effective March 30, 2020, also gave legal backing to the various measures outlined in the President’s National Broadcast on March 29, 2020, such as Restriction/Cessation of Movement in Lagos, FCT and Ogun State and others toward containing the spread of the pandemic in the country.
"In addition, to ensure that Nigerians can still perform on-line transactions and use ATMs whilst observing these restrictions, exemption is granted financial system and money markets to allow very skeletal operations in order to keep the system in light operations during the pendency of these regulations."
