COVID-19: Lagos extends stay-at-home order for public servants from level 14 downwards

…Lagos schools not reopening now —Ministry

…Vaccine cannot undo years of damage —UN Sec. Gen

By Adesina Wahab, Perez Brisibe & Victor Aremu

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has extended the stay-at- home order for public, servants on levels 14 and below to January 18, 2021 to stem the tide of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, Public and private primary and secondary schools in Lagos State are not reopening on January 4, 2021, as earlier announced.

This came as Secretary General of the United Nations, UN, Mr Antonio Guterres condemned what he described as “vaccine nationalism” of the Covid-19 vaccine, stressing that the vaccine itself cannot undo years of damage caused by the virus.

A statement by Lagos State Head of Service, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola noted that the directive for public servants on levels 14 and below to resume January 18, excludes staff on essential duties as well as first responders, urging all public servants to stay safe and ensure continued adherence to all Covid-19 protocols in order to rid the state of the pandemic.

Muri-Okunola also urged all staff to join the virtual 2021 First Work Day Prayer for all Public Servants in the State via Zoom platform with Meeting ID: 857 4418 2571; Password: 100200 from 7.45a.m., today.

Lagos schools not reopening now —Ministry

Public and private primary and secondary schools in Lagos State reopening depends on how the second wave of Covid-19 goes, it was gathered, yesterday.

Asked if schools would reopen as earlier announced by the Ministry of Education, the spokesman, Mr Kayode Abayomi, said that recent developments concerning the second wave of the pandemic would not allow that.

READ ALSO: SANWO-OLU: Standing in the gap

“Please, recall that the Ministry of Education earlier announced January 4, 2020, as resumption date for the second term 2020/2021 academic session, but this has since been overtaken by the turn of events due to the recent waves of Covid-19 pandemic.

“As a result of the spike in Coronavirus pandemic, Mr Governor announced the indefinite closure of all schools. To this end, kindly be informed that following a spike in Covid-19 cases, the Federal Government said all schools should be shut down till January 18 to know the trend the development is taking before deciding on whether or not to reopen schools.

Vaccine cannot undo years of damage —UN Sec. Gen

Mr Guterres in series of tweets, weekend, on his verified twitter handle @antonioguterres, said: “Vaccine nationalism is not only unfair, it is self-defeating.”

Expressing fears over the position of some countries to exclude themselves from the Covid-19 vacation exercise, the UN scribe warned that no country would be safe from the Covid-19 virus until all countries are safe.

He said: “Let’s not fool ourselves. A Covid-19 vaccine cannot undo damage that will stretch across years, even decades to come. Extreme poverty is rising; the threat of famine looms. It is time to reset. As we build a strong recovery, we must seize the opportunity for change.

“Distribution of Covid-19 vaccines around the world will be a monumental task, requiring political solidarity and complex logistical planning. If we distribute vaccines according to need and not wealth, 2021 could see us start to emerge from the pandemic.”

Vanguard News Nigeria

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