President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the extension of phase two of the ease of lockdown in the country by one week.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Mr Boss Mustapha, announced this at the briefing of the PTF which held in Abuja, on Monday.

He said the decision became necessary following the continuous spike in the cases of COVID-19 in the country. Mustapha added that the announcement was made following the end of phase 2 of the gradual easing of lockdown on Monday, July 27, 2020.

The SGF noted that Nigerians have regrettably come to the inevitable conclusion that the majority of Nigerians, irrespective of status, creed, and level of education, continue to live in denial of the virulent nature of the virus and consistently breach the guidelines put in place.

Mustapha noted that due to the upcoming Sallah, Eid-el-Kabir festivities, which coincides with the expiration of the current phase of ease of lockdown, it will be prudent to extend this phase of lockdown by one week.

Recall that Buhari had approved the extension of the second phase of the eased lockdown by 4 weeks with effect from Tuesday, June 30, 2020, to midnight of July 27, 2020. He also gave permission for interstate movement outside of the curfew hours with effect from July 1 2020.