Health Minister Declares Ebola A Matter Of National Emergency

 

The Federal government has declared the Ebola outbreak in Nigeria a matter of national Emergency, adding that everyone is now at risk of being infected. Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu made this known when he appeared before the House of Representatives Committee on Health. He said: “The fact that a Liberian victim of the disease, Mr. Patrick Sawyer could come and die in Nigeria meant that the virus was a global threat

“This is a national emergency. Everyone in the world today is at risk. The experience of Nigeria opens the eyes of the world,” he said.

In Lagos, the state government has appealed to religious organizations including churches and mosques to step down on congregational activities that will bring a large number of worshippers together.

Making the appeal in Lagos, yesterday, while confirming the matron’s death as the first Nigerian fatality of EVD, state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris said the appeal became necessary in the wake of heightened anxiety over the threat posed by the Ebola virus which is transmitted from human-to-human by body contact.

Stressing that the female doctor who tested positive to the virus initially, is still alive, while six other contacts have since tested positive,  Idris, who outlined the move as one of the measures being taken by government to address the situation said:  “I seize this opportunity to appeal to Churches and Mosques to stop all religious gatherings, so as to prevent further spread of the virus .”  He explained that at such gatherings, sweating and body contacts were most likely to occur.

The appeal came on the heels of an announcement by the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, banning delegates from EVD-affected West African nations, from attending the church’s ongoing convention, which opened Monday night at the church’s Redemption Camp along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The Minister advised Nigerians to avoid handshake as much as possible, stating that the virus is both contagious and infectious. He  also said the virus could also be contacted through the sharing of bedspreads, pillow cases and towels among other personal effects with infected person. He said the disease is not airborne but at close range of a 1meter from an infected person, the disease droplets can be transmitted. 

As part of awareness to rise to the national emergency, Chukwu said a website, www.ebolaalert.org, has been designed to offer information on the virus.