There is palpable fear of the spread of COVID-19 in Niger State as residents of Bwari Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have turned a community in the state to a prayer centre.
Niger State has so far recorded two cases of COVID-19, leading to the declaration of a lockdown of the state for two weeks.
The order has not been fully observed in Garam, a border community with FCT, located in Tafa Local Government Area in Niger State.
But before Niger State government declared its lockdown, the Federal Government had done so in the FCT, Lagos and Ogun states.
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While FCT has been observing a total lockdown, restricting prayer houses, Garam, a community in Niger State, has been turned to a Friday prayer centre by residents of Bwari, one of the Area Councils in the capital city.
However, some Garam residents have expressed concerns over the development, which heightened last Friday when over 200 people from Bwari stormed the place to observe their prayers.
Some of the residents, who expressed fear of the spread of Coronavirus, wondered why at a time government was preaching social distancing, over 200 people could still gather for prayers.
One of the residents who preferred anonymity said: “At a period like this when people are afraid of the spread of COVID-19, some people, including educated ones, can still gather without practising social distancing, to observe prayers.
“Some people are still thinking that Coronavirus is a joke. Government gave directive that people should sit at home and observe their prayers, but some people are still putting their lives in danger.
Last Friday, there were 1,095 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country. While 208 cases had been discharged, 32 people have died.