Ondo State Government on Wednesday rolled out new COVID-19 Prevention Guidelines to mitigate the spread of Coronavirus and further protect residents of the State from contracting it, just as it declared the initial Guidelines in circulation as fake and unauthorized.
The Chairman of the State Interministerial Committee on Coronavirus and Vice Chancellor, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, Prof. Adesegun Fatusi made the declaration while presenting the officially-approved updated guidelines for covid-19 prevention in ondo state to newsmen in Akure.
Fatusi who commended the State Executive Members for their support since the fight against COVID-19, said the COVID-19 Prevention Guidelines is borne out of the need for the people to get back to normal life, though with recommended protocols, to safeguard their lives and family. The guidelines as released by the Government is listed below:
A. Religious Services
Churches and Mosques can hold their activities any day of the week, but not between the hours of 10.00pm and 4.00am.
The duration for any indoor religious service must not be more than 2 hours on any
occasion, and all public health guidelines for the prevention of COVID-19 must be
strictly adhered to on every occasion;
Conventions or similar special programmes can hold for only three (3) consecutive days
at a time, but not between the hours of 10.00 pm and 4.00 am on any day; the maximum
duration for such programmes must not exceed three hours on any single occasion, and
all public health guidelines for the prevention of COVID-19 must be strictly adhered to
on every occasion. Permission need to be sought only in cases where some exceptions
to the above-stated provisions are needed.
Such applications should be directed to the
office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health/Ag. Commissioner for Health
for a written approval;
Vigils are totally prohibited until further notice;
Special outdoor religious programmes that may involve mass gathering of people such
as crusades are still prohibited until further notice;
Not more than 50% of the capacity of the building of the Church, Mosque or any other
religious body must be filled during any programme;
All participants in any church, mosque or any other religious group’s activities must
adhere strictly to the following:
a. Wear face masks properly (completely covering the nose and mouth)
throughout the programme
b. Wash hands under running water or use hands sanitiser before entering the
venue of the religious programme
c. Maintain adequate social distance of at least 2 metres or 6 feet (about 2 arm’s
length) from other people at the programme
All Churches, Mosques and other religious bodies must have a dedicated enforcement
team in place to continuously monitor and ensure strict adherence to the COVID-19
prevention guidelines throughout each service or programme;
B. Educational Institutions
I. Primary Schools: The state is actively monitoring preparations regarding provision of adequate logistics for COVID-19 prevention for all primary schools, and announcement regarding the date of resumption will be made at an appropriate date.
II. Junior Secondary School (JSS) JSS 3 students will resume according to the following schedule while the date for resumption of other classes shall be announced at an appropriate future date: a. September 7-13: • Preparation by schools to receive students with provisions that meet with the public health guidelines against COVID-19; • Monitoring of schools’ preparations by relevant government agencies and teams.
b. September 14-18: Revision for students in schools.
c. September 19 – October 4: Examinations.
C. Businesses and Workplaces
I. Government Offices • The current stay-at-home order regarding government workers/civil servants on salary grade level 1-12 is to be maintained till further notice.
• All government offices must make adequate provisions for their staff, clients and visitors to observe the public health measures against COVID-19, including provision of handwashing facilities and/or hand sanitisers, provision of appropriate personal protective equipment to workers in line with their duties; ensure the proper use of face mask all round-the-clock at work; and ensure physical distancing measures including appropriate seating arrangements for staff and visitors;
• All government offices must clearly and boldly display the signs of “No Mask, No Entry; No Mask, No Services” at the entrance of their offices and at strategic points in the workplace;
• All government offices must have a monitoring team in place that would ensure that anyone without mask is denied entry into the business premises or offices, as well as ensure that all staff, clients and visitors adhere strictly to the COVID-19 prevention guidelines at all times, including properly wearing a face mask (to cover both the nose and the mouth) throughout the business hours when in contact with others.
II. Private Businesses •
The Chief Executive or head of each non-governmental establishment is responsible for making appropriate decision regarding work hours, schedule, and mode of work as well as operations of all staff, bearing in mind the need of their office space vis-a-vis the number of staff and type of operations in relation to the need for adequate social distancing as a preventive measure against the spread of COVID-19;
• All non-governmental offices must make adequate provisions for their staff, clients and visitors to observe the public health measures against COVID-19, including provision of handwashing facilities and/or hand sanitisers, provision of appropriate personal protective equipment to workers in line with their duties; ensure the proper use of face mask all round-the-clock at work; and ensure physical distancing measures including appropriate seating arrangements for staff and visitors;
• All offices must clearly and boldly display the signs of “No Mask, No entry; No mask, no services” at the entrance of their business premises and at strategic points in the workplace •
All offices must have a monitoring team in place that would ensure that anyone without mask is denied entry into the business premises or offices, as well as ensure that all staff, clients and visitors adhere strictly to the COVID-19 prevention guidelines at all times, including properly wearing a face mask (to cover both the nose and the mouth) throughout the business hours when in contact with others.
III. Markets
Markets can open on any day of the week, but not between the hours of 10.00 pm and 4.00 am. Market operators must comply with and adhere STRICTLY to all the public health guidelines for the prevention of COVID-19 during every market day; • Observe physical distancing – a space of two metres or 6 feet (two arm’s length between all individuals at all times;
• Provide hand-washing stations with soap and running water or hand sanitisers at the entry spots and strategic points in the market; • Every trader and store owner must have a bottle of hand sanitiser handy for their use and that of their customers and use as needed; • All traders and customers must always
wear face masks properly (to cover their mouth and nose) in the market;
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