Nigeria not yet ready for full opening of the economy -SGF

The federal government on Monday said the country is not yet ready for full reopening of its economy.

Boss Mustapha, chairman of the presidential task force (PTF) on COVID-19, disclosed this at the daily briefing of the task force in Abuja.

Mustapha, who is also the secretary to the government of the federation, said any relaxation of the current guidelines concerning the eased lockdown will result in negative consequences for the populace.

“The reality is that in spite of the modest progress made, Nigeria is not yet ready for full opening of the economy and tough decisions have to be taken for the good of the greater majority,” he said.

“Any relaxation will only portend grave danger for our populace. Advisedly, the current phase of eased restriction will be maintained for another two weeks during which stricter enforcement and persuasion measures will be pursued.

“The two weeks extension of phase one of the eased restriction is also to enable other segments of the economy prepare adequately for compliance with the guidelines, preparatory to reopening in the coming weeks.

“For the PTF, we share your pains but our future is in the hands of every Nigerian and future decisions will depend greatly on our compliance.”

He added that there will be a review of the guidelines for the second phase of the lockdown relaxation, which will end on June 1, 2020, and called for the cooperation of states to ensure that the spread of the virus is contained.

“​For sustainability of the gains recorded, the PTF shall continue to support states by developing guidelines to shape decision-making for future steps in the response and aggressively scale up efforts to ensure effective community information,” he added.

“It is believed that these steps will help consolidate the gains made so far, and position the country to effectively overcome the pandemic.”