As the lockdown is gradually being eased, experts said it was not yet time for the people to take things for granted.
A Lagos-based public health expert, Dr Jeremiah Kajewole, advised residents of Lagos and the FCT, as well as those of Ogun State where there would likely be easing of the lockdown to be cautious when outdoors.
He said, “Social distancing should not be forgotten as people resume their business; the pandemic is not yet over. Going by the President’s recent speech, the lockdown was only eased to save the economy from collapsing. This does not mean people should throw caution to the wind.
As at Saturday, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control had recorded 3,912 COVID-19 cases. While 679 patients had been discharged, 117 had died.
Another health expert based in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Mrs Kikelomo Olatunbosun, frowned upon the manner at which some people crowded banks and bus stops on Monday, adding that it was a sign of “irresponsibility.”
She expressed surprise that some Nigerians did not believe they could contract the deadly coronavirus through the way they threw caution to the wind after the lockdown.
A lawyer and social commentator, Mr Tunde Esan, said the problem was that hunger had dealt so much with people that they did not care about contracting the coronavirus.
He said if the government had provided palliatives for everyone, directives such as social distancing would have been easier to obey.
The lawyer said it was leadership failure for the citizens to be asked to stay at home without being provided palliatives.
“It’s a high level of irresponsibility to lock people down without feeding them. You are asking them to stay indoors without making provisions for them? In these coronavirus times, governance means leading and providing solutions,” he said.
Esan noted that in many countries, governments took over the responsibility of feeding the people immediately they announced lockdowns.
A sociologist based in Abuja, Dr Murtala Hassan, said as much as the people had the responsibility for their health, the government had a huge role to play in enforcing the social distancing directive to curtail the COVID-19 spread.
“Such behaviour displayed by the people on Monday was too barbaric; they didn’t care about others’ health. We cannot afford a second wave of this coronavirus outbreak. Our medical facilities and personnel are already overburdened,” he said.
An economist in Lagos, Dr Babatunde Abraham, said should a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak occur in the country and there was prolonged lockdown, it could cripple the economy totally.
“If advanced economies like the United Kingdom are predicting a total cripple of their economies should a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic occur, definitely we in underdeveloped economies like Nigeria might be swept out of existence. Hence, the people should join the efforts of the government to curtail this pandemic by behaving responsibly,” he said.
The Federal Government on Monday decried the nationwide non-compliance with the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19’s guidelines for gradual reopening of the economy.
A health expert based in Lagos, Dr Kemi Sijuade, said the government might need to impose fine on people flouting directives to curb COVID-19 spread.
“Sometimes when you tell people to do something, they take you for granted. But when you fine them, they wouldn’t do such a thing again,” she said.
