The Federal Government on Wednesday reassured Nigerians that it has the capacity to contain the Ebola outbreak in the country, insisting that all necessary surveillance, contact tracing and emergency response measures have been activated following the confirmation of the index case in Abuja.
The assurance came after an emergency meeting of the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness, Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, at the State House, Abuja.
Addressing journalists after the meeting, Gbajabiamila said the task force had been working quietly since it was inaugurated in June, a development he said enabled health authorities to quickly identify the country’s first Ebola case despite the patient showing no symptoms on arrival.
He revealed that more than 44,000 international flights had entered and departed Nigeria since June without triggering an outbreak, describing the early detection of the imported case as evidence that the country’s surveillance system is working.
“It’s very important to note this. Since the issue of Ebola came up in June, there have been about 44,000 flights in and out of Nigeria. So, it’s because of what the Ministry of Health, the task force and all the agencies have been doing. All hands have been on deck.
“The passenger with the disease showed no symptoms, which came four days after the woman got into Abuja, and it was the identification process and the protocols that were put in place that enabled the quick identification. That also speaks to the country’s capacity and ability to deal with this disease as best as we can,” he said.
The Chief of Staff assured Nigerians that the government would further strengthen existing health protocols and intensify enforcement to prevent further spread of the virus.
“The Task Force is on top of it. NCDC is on top of it; everyone is on deck. We must build community trust and avoid panic, but it’s also important to state clearly that this is a collaborative effort between the government and the people,” Gbajabiamila added, urging citizens to comply with public health directives.
Also speaking, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate, said the Federal Government had activated a nationwide incident management system involving federal and state health authorities, border agencies and international partners.
According to him, health officials are aggressively tracing all contacts linked to the imported Ebola case while isolation and treatment protocols are already in operation.
“We have been conducting contact tracing diligently and isolating those contacts of the index imported case in this country. We will continue to do that, and we want to reassure Nigerians that the federal government, alongside its technical partners, the World Health Organisation, the Africa Centre for Disease Control, and our own Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, have activated the incident management system across the various pillars,” Pate said.
He added that public and private hospitals had been placed on high alert while surveillance systems across airports, immigration points and states remained fully operational.
“Most of our states have adequate response plans. We have the resources, and we’re mobilising those capabilities. And we’re also confident that if we continue on this path, we should be able to dent this outbreak,” the minister stated.
Pate also warned Nigerians against spreading false information, saying rumours and misinformation could undermine efforts to contain the disease.
“The key also for the population is to avoid spreading misinformation or baseless rumours, which can cause unnecessary panic. In addition to our exceptional public health physicians who successfully tamed this virus in 2014, we are confident that if we continue in this direction, we will emerge out of this crisis in a much stronger place,” he said.
The emergency meeting was attended by senior government officials, health experts and representatives of key agencies, including the Nigeria Immigration Service, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), World Health Organisation (WHO), Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the Federal Capital Territory Administration and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority. Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, and Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olajumoke Oduwole, participated virtually.