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Coronavirus: England to lift mask, distancing rules July 19
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday revealed plans to lift most of England’s legal coronavirus restrictions, including face masks and social distancing from July 19, urging personal responsibility rather than government edict. Johnson had initially aimed for a full reopening on June 21, but was forced to push back the date because of a surge in the highly contagious Delta variant. That variant now accounts for nearly all new Covid-19 cases in Britain, and infection rates have soared, sparking concern. But mass vaccinations have stopped a resultant surge in hospital admissions or deaths. “This pandemic is far from over, it certainly won’t be over by the 19th,” warned Johnson. “We must reconcile ourselves, sadly, to more deaths from Covid. “There’s only one reason why we can contemplate g...
‘Coronavirus restriction’: Nigerian government quoted out of context – minister
The federal government on Tuesday denied media reports that it has “introduced or re-introduced’’ new restrictions on COVID-19. Information minister Lai Mohammed made the rebuttal at a meeting with online publishers in Lagos. Mohammed said there were no new restrictions, adding that the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 only reiterated existing regulations to control spread of the disease. The Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 had on Monday announced the enforcement of a curfew across the country in a move it said was to forestall a possible new wave of the pandemic. “The nationwide curfew will be imposed tonight at midnight and it will run through till 4:00 a.m.,” the committee stated. But the minister, a member of the steering committee, said the committee’s national ...
Rivers reopens schools October 5
The Rivers State Government has approved the reopening of universities, other tertiary institutions, as well as secondary and vocational schools in the state, with effect from Monday, October 5, 2020. The decision was reached at the end of an emergency State Executive Council meeting on Friday and presided over by Governor Nyesom Wike in Government House, Port Harcourt. Commissioner for Education, Prof. Kaniye Ebeku, disclosed this while briefing journalists at the end of the meeting. He said the council’s approval did not include primary schools. “The council approved that schools in the State reopen on the 5th of October, 2020, with only the following – all secondary schools in the state, vocational schools in the state, universities and other tertiary institutions. “For the avoidance of...
WHO harps on virus prevention plans
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has emphasised the need for effective COVID-19 prevention plans as countries reopen their economies and borders. Its Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, gave the advice during a news briefing from Geneva on Monday. Ghebreyesus said he had observed the eagerness of countries to “get their economies going again”, eight months into the coronavirus pandemic. According to him, if countries are serious about opening, they must prioritise the suppression of transmission and safety of lives. He warned that opening up without efficient and effective prevention measures in place was “a recipe for disaster”. Ghebreyesus said this might seem an impossible balance, but it could be done if countries were in control of the transmission. “The more control they have...
