Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to relax the lockdown on Lagos State.
George, in a statement in Lagos on Thursday, said the lockdown imposed in the state is stirring up security challenges and anger in Nigerian youths.
According to him, the directive, though to curb the spread of coronavirus has left many Nigerians hungry at home without palliatives.
George asked the Buhari government to relax the lockdown while putting safety measures in place.
The statement read: “There must be a balance between curbing the spread of the virus and protecting livelihoods.
“At the surface level, the federal government’s position on the lockdown is to ensure safety, prevent communal spread of the virus.
“But Lagosians have been staying at home for about a month now. In a largely informal economy where most of our people depend on daily wages, the burden of lack of income is devastating.
“There is a natural growing anger in Lagos as the most vulnerable are ravaged with hunger.
“Youths are becoming restless while others have strayed into sheer banditry, terrorizing homes, breaking into shops and robbing people.
“We cannot continue like this. The government cannot lockdown millions of people without necessary palliatives to ease the dysfunction which this scourge has inflicted upon our country.
“ Lagos must be gradually eased out of this shutdown with comprehensive safety measures.
The former suggested that expansion of testing centers can be adopted as the government eases lockdown in order to contain the virus especially among the asymptomatic population who may spread the virus without knowing that they are infected.
“All these measures can be aligned at the same time with the easing of the shutdown,” George added.
