Ekiti State Government on Tuesday said food markets in Ado Edition and Ikere Edition with history of heavy population would no longer be allowed to operate during the period of lockdown.
The state government explained that the ban become necessary in view of increasing number of COVID-19 cases and the need to fully enforce the social distancing in such places.
The Special Advisers to the state Governor on Public Affairs and Media, Chief Nyi Ojo, and Mrs Mary Osho-Omotosho, respectively, said in Ado Ekiti at a media enlightenment forum that the new order would take full effect from Thursday.
Ojo said that the failure of some traders and residents to comply with the various precautionary measures put in place by government to check the spread of the pandemic were also being considered
Ojo, who gave names of the affected markets to include Oja Oba, Bisi Market and Shasha market asked residents who wished to restock their homes with food items to limit their purchases to their immediate neighborhood until further notice.
According to him, the recent confirmed case of another COVID-19 case, who had over 70 contacts, had put the state on a high risk considering the numbers of places and people she had contact with.
In her own contribution, Mrs Omotosho pleaded with the traders to adhere to the stay-at-home order and stop trading in these markets to avoid sanctions from the government.
She urged members of the public to bear with the government, explaining that the state government was aware of the inconveniences and hardship the lockdown had caused them.
“Every step taken by the government is in the best interest of citizens,” she said .(NAN)