Wike makes u-turn, bans large gatherings for Easter

The Rivers state government has restored a partial ban on church services scheduled to hold on Easter Sunday.

On Thursday, Nyesom Wike, governor of the state, had directed that “all Christians should have Easter church services with their full congregation and pray to God to forgive us of our sins, continue to intervene in our affairs and protect the state and our people from the coronavirus.”

However, after criticism from Nigerians and groups such as the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), the state government made a u-turn on its decision to ease the lockdown.

In a statement issued on Saturday, Paulinus Nsirim, the commissioner for information and communication, said the decision to make the lockdown partial was taken after consultation with religious leaders and civil society groups.

“The Rivers State Government has cancelled the concession granted churches to hold Easter Church Services with their full congregations,” it read.

“This decision was taken after due consultations with eminent clergy men, well-meaning Nigerians and civil society groups.”

For churches that would hold services, they were advised to “stick to the 50 persons per service to maintain social distancing”.