Nigeria coronavirus cases rise by 148, total now 2950

Nigeria Centre for Disease Control on Tuesday confirmed a total number of 148 new coronavirus cases and five deaths in the last 24 hours.

Nigeria’s populated city Lagos and Kano states have the highest numbers. While Lagos recorded 43 new cases, Kano recorded 32 new cases.

Zamfara State witnessed a spike with 14 new cases announced while Abuja recorded 10 new cases.

Katsina continue recording more cases as nine new cases were recorded in the state while Taraba State confirmed seven new cases.

Borno and Ogun recorded six new cases each while Oyo State has five new cases, NCDC also announced three new cases in Edo, Kaduna and Bauchi.

Two new cases were found in Adamawa and Gombe while Plateau, Sokoto and Kebbi had one new case each.

In total, Nigeria has now confirmed 2950 cases of COVID19, discharged 481 persons, while 98 persons have died.

Nigeria began a “phased and gradual” easing of more than four weeks of lockdowns in the national capital and the largest city on May 4, President Muhammadu Buhari said in an address on Monday.

Lagos and Ogun states and the federal capital territory of Abuja entered lockdowns to tame the spread of the new coronavirus on March 30.

Buhari said the lockdowns had come at a “very heavy economic cost,” stripping many citizens of their livelihoods.

“No country can afford the full impact of a sustained lockdown while awaiting the development of vaccines,” Buhari said.

Millions of Nigeria’s 200 million citizens, more than 20 million of whom live in Lagos, live on daily wages, and the lockdown left many without money to buy food.