… Violators of new rule face N10m penalty
In its efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus in Rivers State, new guidelines have been rolled out by the state government on burial and wedding ceremonies.
This was announced by the Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Paulinus Nsirim.
According to him, prospective couples will be required to apply to the State Governor through the Commissioner for Social Welfare and Rehabilitation.
He said, “Such applications must be accompanied with information on the venue of the ceremony, names, addresses and phone numbers of attendees to make contact tracing easy if the need arises.
“Marriages would not have more than 50 attendees, including family members who must wear face masks and adhere strictly to social distancing of not less than two meters.”
The commissioner added, “While church weddings must be conducted between 9am and 12noon, traditional marriages would be conducted between 4pm and 7pm.
“Venues of marriages must have provisions for running water and soap at three points and the venue decontaminated after the event.”
Nsirim also clarified that wedding receptions were not allowed under the guidelines in order to reduce the risk of community transmission of COVID-19.
He, however, said violators of the new rules would be made to pay a fine of N10 million.
He said those seeking to bury their loved ones would also be expected to include names, addresses and phone numbers of those to attend such funerals in their applications.
The Rivers State Executive Council meeting was presided over by Governor Nyesom Wike.
