President Muhammadu Buhari will observe this year’s Eid prayers with his family at home, presidency said on Friday.
The president has also cancelled the usual celebration with top government officials, political leaders, community heads, Muslim and Christian religious leaders and children, saying he would not receive any homage this year as part of efforts to contain coronavirus.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, in a statement, said these were the resolves of the president as the month-long Ramadan fast was coming to an end and Eid-el-Fitr celebration around the corner.
According to Shehu, the decision is in observance of the lockdown measures put in place in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja “to save lives and protect people from all dangers.”
He also said the move was in line with the directive of the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, suspending Eid congregational prayers across the country as well as the protocol against mass gathering issued by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.
THISDAY
