Benue govt places total ban on social gatherings, restricts religious gatherings to 50

The Benue State government has placed a total ban on public gatherings and restricted religious gatherings in the state to 50 at a time to stem the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was revealed in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mrs. Ngunan Addingi, who warned that all shops and supermarkets must ensure that those coming in are wearing their face masks and must have hand sanitizers for use by customers.

Mrs Addingi who was speaking at the end of the weekly SEC meeting in Makurdi and presided over by the Deputy Governor, Mr. Benson Abounu, added that State Executive Council resolved that a religious gathering of over 50 people would not be allowed anywhere in the state.

Speaking further, Mrs Addingi said that bars and restaurants will only provide partial services as only takeaways will be made available to customers in order to stem the spread of the virus.

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“Attendance in churches/mosques must not be more than 50 people at a time. All shops and supermarkets must ensure that those coming in are wearing their face masks and such places must have water and soap for the washing of hands or hand sanitizers for use by customers.

“Bars and restaurants will only provide partial services as only takeaways will be made available to customers.

“The SEC resolved that commercial bus operators would be allowed to convey seven passengers at a time, while commercial motorcycle operators would be allowed a passenger at a time.”

She said the Council approved January 18 as the resumption date for schools in the state, warning that “schools will be strictly monitored to ensure that they maintain and observe all Covid-19 protocols.

“The SEC directed that those with large number of students will stagger their programmes to ensure that the students and pupils are not overcrowded. “Benue State University, Makurdi, will also resume on January 18 as scheduled with arrangements in place to ensure safety in the institution,” Addingi said.

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