The Governor of Cross River state, Ben Ayade, has directed that all civil servants in the state from Grade Level 10 and above should resume work today even as he further extends the lockdown by another two weeks.
Recall that the initial stay-at-home directive was expected to have ended last Saturday.
He gave the directive in a press release signed by his chief media adviser, Christian Ita, maintaining that ‘the he no mask no movement policy’ and ‘no mass gatherings’ were still in full force.
Ayade directed that all returning civil servants are to receive nose masks from the COVID-19 Response task force through their respective permanent secretaries.
He warned that no resident or indigene must import the masks but must patronize the locally-made, especially the ones from the state garment factory.
“All nose masks to be used in the state must be locally made, with the place of origin clearly marked “The sale of masks made by the Cross River State Garment Factory is prohibited.
Masks are to be distributed free of charge “All entry and exit points (air, land and water) into the state hereby remain closed for a further two weeks.”
To avert the Rivers State scenario, Ayade warned that any “emergency evacuation by air, a certification by the national headquarters of the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) is required. Even so, the pilots are prohibited from stepping out of the aircraft.”
He said defaulters will be prosecuted in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Cross River State Epidemic and Pandemic Law 2020.

By: Friday Nwagbara, Calabar