Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, says corpses of persons who tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) cannot be claimed for burial.

He said such corpses would be handled by the ministry of health because they are contagious.

He said this while speaking at a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum in Abuja to give an update on the activities of the presidential task force on COVID-19.

According to NAN, the minister commended Nigerians for complying with the federal government’s stay-at-home directive, adding that it would boost the efforts of stakeholders in the fight to curb the spread of coronavirus.

“Coronavirus is very dangerous and contagious; there is no medicine for it yet and it is not just capable of killing, overwhelming healthcare system, it will destroy the economy. In some countries, they are putting dead bodies in big refrigerators, because the morgues have filled up. Nigerians should not forget that these are not the type of corpses that can be claimed for burial because it must be handled by the ministry of health,” he said.

He called for the cooperation of citizens and asked them to “stay safe, obey simple instructions of basic hygiene and social distancing,” adding that “in a few weeks, we will resume our normal life”.

So far, Nigeria has 190 cases of COVID-19. Of that figure, 20 persons have recovered and have been discharged from hospital.