Ondo govt cancels Easter Sunday church services as state records second case of COVID-19

The Ondo State government Saturday announced the cancellation of the Easter Sunday church services following the confirmation of the second case of coronavirus in the state.

The state Commissioner for Information, Donald Ojogo, who disclosed this in a statement, said the government has declared that there would no church services on Easter Sunday.

He urged all Christians to worship in their houses.

The government had earlier lifted the ban on religious gatherings to enable the Christians worship in the church on Easter Sunday only.

This followed the agreement reached by the state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu and the leadership of the Christians Association of Nigeria.

But the new development has forced the government to change its mind on the matter.

The government said the emergence of second case of coronavirus in the state had once again, reinforced the need to “deepen our collective efforts to combat the pandemic.”

The commissioner said: “The Ondo State COVID-19 Response Team has reported that the second case, having travelled from Lagos to Ondo State must give the government greater concern to avoid community transmission.

“Against the backdrop of the above, the Ondo State Government has directed the cancellation of the special concession granted churches across the state to celebrate the Easter Sunday/Service. This decision was taken after due consultations with the leadership of the CAN.

READ ALSO: Lagos discharges four more COVID-19 patients; total now 50

“All measures and steps taken in respect of the COVID-19 still remain in force. In particular, government has taken further steps to effectively man the boundaries in the light of reported cases of compromise and breach of the directive to close all inter-state entry points into Ondo State.”

In a similar vein, the Chairman of the CAN in the state, Rev. Ayo Oladapo, said the association had agreed with the state government because of the current development in the state.

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