COVID-19: Complete lockdown not sustainable in Nigeria, says Atedo Peterside

As part of efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19, many nations including Nigeria have at some point had to impose a complete lockdown in certain states or across the country.

However, there are some who believe that placing Nigeria under a complete lockdown is not sustainable, even as the nation continues to record a rise in coronavirus cases daily.

One of such is Mr Atedo Peterside who is of the opinion that there is a lot that must be taken into consideration before such a call as a total lockdown is made.

Speaking on Channels Television’s COVID-19 Update, the investment banker said a lot depends on whether the government sees the situation as a short term problem or one that would linger for a while.

According to the economist, if the situation is for a long term, then we can be sure that the complete lockdown exercise will not work because people will be forced to disobey in a bid to save themselves from dying of hunger.

“I think it is important to emphasise that a complete lockdown is not sustainable, a lot depends on what you think we are dealing with, is it a sprint or a marathon?

“If you know it is a marathon, a complete lockdown is not sustainable; it’s not sustainable because people will not cooperate after a while, because they will die of hunger,” Mr Peterside opined.

Mr Atedo Peterside who is the founder of Stanbic IBTC Bank, noted that what the governments have been doing is transiting from early efforts of the complete lockdown to partial lockdown of a type which can be sustained.

The seasoned entrepreneur said there are scientific evidence to back the transition from complete to partial lockdown, stressing that every government must move to an arrangement which can be sustained by its people, because there is no telling how long the pandemic will linger. (Channels TV)

• Atedo Peterside