No Presidential broadcast on COVID-19 – Presidency

The Presidency says there will be no presidential broadcast on COVID-19, on Monday as being speculated in some quarters.

Dr Aliyu Sani, the National Coordinator, Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, had on Sunday while reacting to a question during a programme on Channels Television, disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari would address Nigerians on May 18.

According to him, the president will be addressing the nation as the first phase of the easing of lockdown and restrictions for the containment of the coronavirus disease comes to end on May 17.

The president had earlier on Sunday received members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 led by its Chairman and Secretary to Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, at the State House where he was updated on the activities of the PTF.

However, Mr Femi Adesina, the President’s spokesman on his verified twitter handle, @FemiAdesina, refuted the media report on presidential broadcast, saying President Buhari had no plan to broadcast to Nigerians on COVID-19 on Monday.

“No presidential broadcast on COVID-19 updates today. None was planned. Rather, the PTF will during its usual media briefings bring the nation up to speed on the next steps,” Adesina said.

Buhari had on Monday via online meeting with Nigeria Governors’ Forum enjoined governors to work closely with the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 to engender better harmony in the daunting task of checking the pandemic.

The president disclosed that the PTF had briefed him on next step in the national response to the pandemic, “and I have directed that they work very closely with the governors.”

He said the pandemic was “beyond technology, power, and resources”, noting that countries that had all those were recording highest casualties round the world.

“We have to be very careful. We need to continue to educate and persuade the people to accept the reality of the situation, and do all that is necessary to stay safe,” the president said.