A day after the commencement of lockdown in Kano State, major problems have emerged in the operation of essential services within the city of Kano, the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD has revealed.
CITAD, in a statement by its Campaigns and Communication Officer, Ali Sabo, has therefore called on the Kano State government to provide a clear road map on how basic essential services could be accessed by citizens as well as those operating the lockdown.
The statement stated: “Since the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus in the world and most especially when Nigeria recorded its first confirmed case of the virus in Lagos, the Centre for Information Technology and Development has been following the development closely, calling the attention of government both at federal and state levels to prepare adequate measures and to have a proper plan on how to tackle the potential spread of the virus. At the same time, CITAD has been feeding the general public with information about safety measures and the need to follow the advice given by World Health Organization (W.H.O) which include sharing of infographics on social media and bi-weekly twitter chat with health professionals.
“As one of the best ways to prevent the spread of coronavirus among people as advised by professionals, any place where there is confirmed case of the virus, total lockdown of the city is usually imposed as we have seen in many countries in the world.
“Similarly, Kano state government on the 14th of April, 2020 after having five confirmed cases in the state announced the total lockdown of the State to begin by 10pm on the 16th of April, 2020. Many people, especially those that live on daily hustle criticized the decision, citing example that their lives depend on daily hustle to feed themselves and their families which the state government has not announced any alternatives for them despite many calls from concerned citizens and organizations to introduce palliatives that will cushion the suffering of this class of people.
“Consequently, as the lockdown began yesterday evening, many people were left stranded, including the security agencies who are saddled with the responsibilities to ensure the total compliance of the order due to closing of all activities in the state including essential services.
“Reports reaching us and testimonies from some of the security agents on duty confirmed that the security personnel on duty were finding it difficult to find where to eat, water to drink and other needs as the State Government did not announce a clear road map on how the lockdown would be.
“As we are all aware, all over the world where this kind of order is being imposed, some exceptions are made in order to allow people to access basic needs.
“It is on this regard that we are appealing to the Kano state government to:
“i. Design a clear road map on how the lockdown is going to continue in the state
“ii. Allow some essentials services like pharmacies, restaurants, water vendors etc. as this will allow even the security agents to access these services while on duty especially food and water with clear guidelines for operating
“iii. Allow bakeries to continue operating in the state but with clear guidelines of how they could operate, including provision for temperature monitoring, provision of hand sanitizers at entrance and use of facemasks and hand globes
“iv. Allow Yan garuwa (water vendors) to continue operating within their areas of resident due to lack of tap water in many of the areas in the city with provision of strict observance of social distancing and other preventive measures such as wearing facemasks and hand globes.”
