By Godwin Anene
Anyone who violates the COVID-19 burial protocols in Rivers State will be made to pay N100 million henceforth, the state government has said.
This, according to the state government, will help check the spread of coronavirus in Rivers.
Rivers currently sit on seven position in the COVID-19 chart by Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) with 2,305 confirmed cases of the virus.
The state had 18 cases on Friday, the highest in a day in recent weeks.
Briefing journalists on Saturday, Rivers Health Commissioner, Prof. Princewill Chike, said the monetary sanction was reached at the end of the State Executive Council.
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He said the Council also directed local government chairmen in the state to enforce the directive in their respective localities.
The commissioner emphasized that public burials in the state remain prohibited in Rivers in line with the state gazette aimed at curtailing the spread of the virus.
Prof. Chike said, “Public burials in the state remain as outlined by the gazette of the state stipulating that no more than 50 persons should be allowed in burials in Rivers State.
“We also agreed that Local Government Chairmen should also assist the burial committees to ensure that this planned directive of the Rivers State Executive Council is carried to the letter. Every defaulter to these regulations would be made to pay a fine of N100m.”
Governor Nyesom Wike had in June 2020 issued an executive order prescribing a N10m fine for anyone conducting a burial contrary to the provisions of the order.
