Nigerian government on Thursday announced that passports of  returnees who breached COVID-19 protocols will be suspended for six months. 

Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 chaired by secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha, made this known on Thursday. 

The task force says it will publish passport number of 100 returnees who failed to do the mandatory test seven days after they returned into the country and suspend their passport for the next six months. 

If the government makes good its threat, many Nigerians who returned home from abroad for the holidays could be stranded.

While flights to and from UK and US will not be suspended, the PTF said there would be stringent monitoring to ensure that COVID-19  protocols are complied with that those travelling. 

As a result of the discovery of a new strain of COVID-19, the UK government has imposed a Tier 4 lockdown in London and southeastern England to curb the spread of the new strain of coronavirus. 

Many countries including China, France, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Netherlands, Latvia and Belgium have suspended flights to and from UK in a bid to curb the spread of the new strain of coronavirus into their territories.