Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:
1. Nigeria, on Saturday, confirmed eighty-seven (87) new cases of Coronavirus. The Nigeria Center for Disease Control, NCDC, confirmed this on its Twitter page. This brings the number of confirmed cases in Nigeria to 1182.
2. The Kano State Government has confirmed 74 new cases of coronavirus in the state. Governor Umar Ganduje made this known on Saturday. Speaking at a press briefing, Ganduje said out of 489 samples, 74 tested positive.
3. The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has disclosed that the state might resort to mass burials, as a way to decongest crowded mortuaries in the state. Sanwo-Olu, while giving an update on the COVID-19 pandemic on Saturday, explained that mortuaries are congested as a result of the lockdown.
4. No fewer than 20 prominent persons were reported on Saturday to have dropped dead in the last 24 hours in Kano. While some had Coronavirus symptoms, what hit others still remains unknown. There are speculations of meningitis, but residents say they cannot explain what’s going on in the ancient city.
5. Abia Senator, Enyinnaya Abaribe has opposed any decision either by the federal or state governments to extend the COVID-19 lockdown. Abaribe, Senate Minority Leader, warned against the planned nationwide lockdown over the pandemic, saying that resorting to the extra measures would ignite a major economic and security crisis that could hurt many Nigerians who depend on daily earnings for their sustenance. The lawmaker warned that pushing for it could be combustible and counter-productive as the people appear too worn-out to soak in further shocks.
6. The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, has threatened to arrest, prosecute printers, and users of fake vehicle exemption pass during the Coronavirus lockdown. In a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday, the Minister, Sadiya Umar Farouq, reminded Nigerians that the pass was to facilitate the movement of emergency personnel and providers of essential services only.
7. Reno Omokri, a former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on New Media, has questioned the whereabouts of President Muhammadu Buhari and his Vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that the country’s leaders are the crisis Nigeria is currently facing.
8. The Lagos State Government has confirmed the discharge of six Coronavirus patients in the state from the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). This was made known by the Lagos State Ministry of Health via its Twitter handle on Saturday.
9. The police in Ogun State have arrested a herbalist, Lajuwon Ogunleye, his wife, Adetutu Apalaya and one Fatai Sefiu, for alleged conspiracy and murder of a seven-year-old boy, Pelumi Apalaya, for ritual. The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the arrest on Saturday. Oyeyemi said the suspects were arrested on April 22.
10. In sports, Arsenal players will return to training at their London Colney training ground next week. The UK is still under a government-imposed lockdown amid the Coronavirus pandemic. But the Gunners will be the first Premier League club, to make a tightly controlled return to training since English football was suspended on March 13.