COVID-19: Why Buhari extended lockdown – BMO

The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO), on Tuesday, said President Muhammadu Buhari’s stay-at-home extension was for the well-being of Nigerians.

BMO Chairman, Niyi Akinsiju, in a statement, said the President had no choice than to order the continued lockdown on Lagos, Ogun, and Abuja due to risks of contracting coronavirus and expert warnings.

Akinsiju pointed out that no one has more information on the trajectory of the virus or the capacity of the relevant authorities to stem the tide of infection than Buhari.

“So, for him to take what he described as a painful decision in his nationwide broadcast, and even alluding to the choice between life and death, then Nigerians should know that it was a well-thought-out position.

“Even in countries with more developed health facilities, the emphasis is on physical distancing with little or no movement of people at this time because it is the most effective way of limiting community transmission of the virus.

“The alternative is to ease the lockdown and have a situation like that of Ecuador which has recorded so many deaths from the virus attack,” the BMO chairman said. 

Akinsiju noted that dead bodies were being abandoned on roads while coffins have become scarce in Ecuador.

“Even the US, with its acclaimed health facilities, is recording an average of 1,500 deaths on a daily basis. This is the kind of scenario the President is making efforts to avoid.

“A country like India, with its 1.3 billion population and more people per square kilometer, has just extended its nationwide lockdown by 21-days after the expiration of an earlier three-week stay-at-home directive.”

He stressed that Nigeria’s coronavirus figure is low when compared to other countries and this has a lot to do with the Buhari administration’s efforts.

BMO urged the citizenry to continue to abide by the federal government’s directives, adding that “if we unlock prematurely, we may lose what we gained in two weeks in a few hours”.