Lagos state holds ground, justifies reopening of schools despite COVID-19 spike
- Babajide Sanwo-Olu said rising cases of child abuses are some of the reasons for schools' reopening on January 18
- The Lagos governor further argued that students will be endangered and left roaming the streets if schools were not yet reopened
- 551 new COVID-19 cases were recorded in Lagos as the NCDC announced 1,301 infections on Tuesday, January 19
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The Lagos government has justified the reopening of schools amid a rising surge in the number of COVID-19 cases daily recorded in the state.
Speaking on Tuesday, January 19, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the decision to reopen schools was reached due to the past experience of students failing to "come back to school."
The governor, who made this disclosure while briefing newsmen at the state house, Ikeja, on COVID-19, said after the first lockdown in 2020, over 24,000 students refused to return to the classrooms.
Source: Twitter
Sanwo-Olu said there is a possibility of students "roaming and becoming endangered" if the schools were not reopened on Monday, January 18, Daily Sun reports.
He also cited cases of child abuses among reasons for quick reopening despite the mounting panic over the second wave of COVID-19.
"Last year, after the first lockdown and kids returned to school, about 24,000 of them have not come back to school.
“At least, if they’re registered from the beginning of a session they can monitor them. If not, they will just be roaming and they become endanger.
"We have seen incidents of child abuse and all unprintable things being done to these children."
Lagos state recorded 551 cases as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) announced 1,301 new infections on Tuesday, January 19.
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Meanwhile, the federal government has issued a clear message on the possibility of imposing another lockdown following disregard towards the safety protocols issued on COVID-19.
Speaking during a media briefing on Tuesday, January 19, the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 through its chairman Bosss Mustapha lamented low compliance to the safety protocols by Nigerians.
Mustapha said since schools resumed on Monday, January 18, there has been a clear disregard for the federal government's directives on the deadly virus.
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