Mixed reactions trail PTF’s extension of Kano lockdown

The fresh two weeks lockdown imposed on Kano State by the Presidential Task Force (PTF) has generated mix reactions, even as the state government keeps mute.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and Chairman of PTF on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, announced the extension of the lockdown on Kano during a press briefing in Abuja yesterday.

The PTF’s declaration came when Kano residents were waiting patiently to the state government’s next pronouncement sequel to the end of seven days stay-at-home order earlier imposed by Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.

While a professor of Law with Bayero University, Kano (BUK), Mamman Yusufari, believes the PTF had the backing of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to impose lockdown on Kano, another senior lawyer, Saed, Mohammad, thinks otherwise.

According to Yusufari, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), “the state government cannot override the Federal Government when it comes to imposing a lockdown in a state. This is because the Federal Government is bigger than the state government.”But Mohammad insisted that Ganduje could override the PTF’s decision, which he believed was a mere statement.

His words, “The governor can do otherwise and my reason is simple: the PTF’s comment is a mere policy statement. This is a body that is not known to any law. Again, there is no law that empowers the PTF to lock down any state in Nigeria unless it is contained in the regulations made by the president pursuant to the Quarantine Act. Cap 22 Laws of the Federation 2002.

“Besides, Kano is not mentioned specifically or included in one of the areas covered in the aforementioned regulation made by the president under the Quarantine Act. So, for me, PTF’s mention of extension of any two weeks in Kano is ultra vires, null and void, and the governor can do away with it and issue a fresh order against it.”

Meanwhile, the outcome of the crucial meeting Ganduje had with Islamic clerics at the Government House was not made public. Residents waited anxiously to know the decision of the government on re-opening of Friday prayers and Eid-el-Fitir prayers this week.