Ebola: We’ll repeat 2014 feat, FG assures Nigerians

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, has said Nigerians have nothing to worry about the confirmation of Ebola disease in the Federal Capital Territory.

She gave the assurance on Wednesday after his meeting with Chief of Staff to the President, Honourable Femi Gbajabiamila.

The Minister of Health had on Tuesday disclosed that a woman who recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda is currently in isolation and receiving medical care at a private hospital in the FCT, following confirmation that she had contracted the disease.

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Professor Pate told State House correspondents that the Federal Government was determined to contain the spread of the disease, in the same manner it handled its outbreak in 2014.

He said agencies like the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention have been placed on alert to carry out containment measures to halt the spread of the disease.

He said: “All I can tell you is that we are collaborating with our sister African nation of Uganda. What is important is that we have found this one case. We are doing contact tracing, and we are putting containment measures to ensure that it doesn’t go into our population.

“The Federal government has competent authorities to be able to deal with this. We have done it in 2014, and we have good public health institutions. Nigerians should be reassured.

“We must be vigilant, but not panic, and people should respect public health information from trusted sources and not spread misinformation and false rumors. We would be truthful to Nigerians with the information that we receive on a daily basis. I will be receiving a report. NCDC has an incident management system.

“They are working 24/7, and the task force is also active. So we have things in place that give us confidence that Nigeria can weather through this public health crisis, which has taken five months without happening, and we have seen other countries also deal with it.

“So let’s not fall into a trap of hysteria or panic, it’s one case. It’s an imported case, and we are containing it. And we will continue to take measures. If the situation changes, we’ll come out and inform Nigerians.“