By Monsuru Olowoopejo
Inspite of hitches encountered during enforcement of lockdown in Lagos, the State Taskforce has sealed a brothel and a Chinese firm for violating President Muhammadu Buhari’s two-week stay-at-home pronouncement in the state.
The Taskforce intensified its ongoing enforcement, sealing SPN Packaging at Plot B, Israel Adebajo Close, Ikeja and Supreme Brothel, at 8, Omitola Panada, Street, Agege, for violating the order.
Lagos State Special Taskforce on enforcement of coronavirus preventive measures includes Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) Lagos Safety Commission and the Rapid Respond Squad (RRS).
Director-General, Safety Commission, Lanre Mojola, who spoke after the closure, stated that the enforcement was carried out following a tip-off received from good-spirited individuals that some firms directed their workers to resume duties, despite the stay-at-home order announced by the Federal and State governments.
He described the non-compliance of some organisations as unpatriotic, noting that the essence of the directive was to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in Lagos.
“In following one of the tip-offs to the factory of PSN, a Chinese packaging firm, the team discovered that some Chinese nationals and their Nigerian workers were inside the factory while production was ongoing, contrary to an earlier claim that the premises were empty. They were immediately directed to stop production before the company was eventually sealed”.While condemning actions of business owners that forced their employees to defy presidential directive, Mojola stressed that the State Government enforcement team will not be deterred by the antics of some selfish people who are determined to endanger the lives of others through their unbridled greed.
While revealing that the enforcement team also dislodged a group of over 50 commercial sex workers at Supreme Brothel before sealing off the premises, Mojola warned residents of the area to desist from patronizing such crowded locations to prevent the spread of diseases, especially the lethal Coronavirus.
On her part, the General Manager LASEPA, Dr. Dolapo Fasawe revealed that the enforcement team has been receiving lots of tip-offs from concerned citizens about the activities of some unscrupulous organisations contravening the lockdown directive in the State.
She declared that there is no hiding place for violators of government directives because the enforcement team is working round the clock to ensure total compliance, urging every Lagosian to abide by the stay-at-home directive in support of efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.
