The AFCON qualifier between hosts Nigeria and Sierra Leone on November 13 will be played at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City without any spectators, officials disclosed.
Organisers had planned to throw the gates open for fans to watch the game free of charge.
However, both the ministry of sports and Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 have advised the Edo State Government and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) against breaching Coronavirus protocol by allowing fans into the match venue.
“The ministry wishes to bring to your attention that in compliance with condition of no gathering agreed upon by the ministry and the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 before the Federal Government opened up football and contact sports, the match between Nigeria and Sierra Leone will not have any audience and no gathering save for players, match officials and government officials from both countries. Testing must be conducted on all of them prior to the match,” a letter to Edo State deputy Governor Philip Shuaibu read in part.
The PTF has expressed concerns over a spike following a second wave of Covid-19 and is considering another lockdown.
Bunch of senseless ideots, how could they consider throwing the gate open to the public knowing that it could be a potential covid-19 spreading event. What are they looking to accomplish. Those are the kind of ideots in leadership positions in our country.
Oga Chuck, are you a Nigerian and also living in this country ? Were you NOT in this country, when we had political campaigns in Edo and Ondo states ? We also had elections and victory parties after the elections. Shortly after, we had #endsars peaceful protest and it’s street parties, palliatives looting, burnings and all other ugly stuffs that came with it, all over the country. I am still wondering and asking…”Covid 19, where art thou”? There NOT been any significant rise in Edo or Ondo states after the elections. Neither has there been any significant increase all over the country after the #endsars protest and stuffs. Please do the calculations yourself. You be 9ja. Use your head… I beg.