Lagos lovers need COVID-19 clearance to hold big weddings — government
You are free to get married to the love of your life. But if you want 300 or more people to attend your wedding, you will need a permit from the Lagos State Government.
The Babajide Sanwo-Olu government made this known in a “Stay At Home” notice on Friday.
“Weddings and social gatherings must not exceed 300 people with prior clearance from the Lagos State Safety Commission,” the notice stated.
“If it is not a big wedding, maybe 50 people, 100 people, we are not really concerned,”
The Director-General of the Lagos State Safety Commission, Lanre Mojola, later told Punch on Saturday morning.
“But if it is a large gathering with 300 people and above, it is mandatory that you get a clearance. It is a free clearance; no payment whatsoever.
“The process is not difficult, you go online and input the details of the wedding. There might be a requirement to have safety marshals on ground, depending on the size of the wedding.
“The move is to put in place some control measures to prevent super-spreader weddings and hold people accountable. It also helps us in planning.
“For instance, if we are envisaging 500 guests at a wedding, there will be more attention on them. We will do our regular patrols and visit such places to ensure that they comply with safety protocols.”
“We will also forward those locations to our brothers in LASTMA (Lagos State Traffic Management Authority) and LAMATA (Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority) to be on the lookout that there is a big wedding and many cars will be coming into a neighbourhood so as to aid efficient traffic management,” Mojola said.
Earlier, the commission said security agents have been mandated to ensure full enforcement at weddings and other social gatherings, adding that no one would be deemed to be above the law.
“Any and all breaches of these regulations and public health protocols will lead to immediate closure (of event centres) as well as attract heavy fines, and any other sanctions and penalties deemed fit, in line with the Lagos State Infectious Diseases Control Regulation 2020,” it had stated.
Lagos, which is one of the epicentres of coronavirus management in Nigeria, has recorded over 26,000 infections and more than 200 associated deaths since the outbreak of the virus in the country.
The state government recently returned Covid-19 protocols at religious centres and also banned a number of social places from holding gatherings as the country battles the second wave of the pandemic.
