In an apparent move to prevent another outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the country, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) recently cautioned airlines to be extra vigilant and ensure that the carriers of the disease were not allowed to enter the country by air. The order affected airlines operating regional and international flights into the country.
The outbreak of the disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) might have informed the directive by the NCAA. Also, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the disease in the Congo a public health emergency of international concern. A Liberian-American diplomat, Patrick Sawyer, brought the EVD to Nigeria on July 20, 2014. Eventually, he became the first victim of the disease, which claimed some lives in the country.
The nation’s health authorities did everything humanly possible to contain the disease at that time. We commend the NCAA for its directive on Ebola outbreak. We believe that heeding the advice will go a long way to check the outbreak of the dreaded disease in the country.
Therefore, we urge airlines to abide by the directive of the NCAA and ensure that nobody brings this disease into the country again. They must ensure that they have on board valid and appropriate number of first aid kits and universal precaution kits.
The airlines should equally refresh the knowledge of their crew members for improved and sustained proficiency in handling and communicating with the Air Traffic Control (ATC) of any suspected case of communicable disease on board.
However, this directive should not be limited to the airports alone. The Federal Government must ensure that all entry points into the country, including the seaports and land borders, are manned by diligent health officials to ensure that those coming into the country do not have the disease.
Government must ensure that something is urgently done to check the influx of foreigners into the country through the numerous porous land borders. This is one of the best ways to ensure that those with the disease do not sneak into the country.
DRC is not too far from Nigeria. There is regular movement of goods and services between Nigeria and the DRC. Those traveling to Ebola-endemic countries should be cautious.
There is need to resume those precautionary measures Nigerians took when the disease first entered the country some years ago. Such measures include using sanitizers to wash hands, avoid having hand contact with suspected carriers and washing of fruits and vegetables before eating. States and local governments should be vigilant and guard against the outbreak of the disease in their domains.
We urge Nigerians to observe public hygiene that can keep at bay communicable diseases, including Ebola. The public health department should enlighten the people about the disease, the causes and preventive measures. It is good that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has assured Nigerians that it is not likely that the disease can be imported into the country. But whether the disease can be imported into the country or not, the government should increase its surveillance throughout the country so that we are not caught unawares.
It should be noted that the first outbreak of Ebola was recorded in 1976 in Nzara Sudan, and in Yambuku, DRC. Yambuku is a village situated near Ebola River, from which the disease derived its name.
Ebola is a deadly disease. The disease, according to medical experts, is easily spread by physical contact and eating of contaminated fruits and meat. Some of the symptoms of the disease include fatigue, fever, muscle pain, headache, sore throat and weakness. Major hosts of the disease include certain species of bats, monkeys and apes.
Since the inception of the disease in the DRC, over 29,000 people were infected in the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa from 2014 to 2016 while not less than 11,310 died. There were 17,000 survivors. Beyond this, government must do something to check other diseases that affect Nigerians, especially cholera and yellow fever.