By Nathaniel Zaccheaus, Abuja
The Federal Government and Uganda have differed over whether the recent travel of Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola patient through Uganda establishes the East African country as the source of her infection, even as both countries step up measures to prevent further spread.
While Nigeria has classified the case as imported and linked the patient’s recent travel history to Uganda, the Ugandan authorities said transit through the country does not establish that she contracted the virus there, stressing that the location of exposure remains under investigation.
The divergence emerged as the Nigerian Senate rejected a proposal for lawmakers to inspect major entry points, citing the risk of exposing legislators to infection, while the House of Representatives called for early preparation of isolation camps and a revival of the country’s 2014 Ebola response blueprint.
*Senate rejects inspection visits, demands emergency funds
The Senate also demanded emergency funding to strengthen surveillance, screening and containment measures, including tougher health checks at international airports, seaports and designated land borders, functional isolation and treatment centres nationwide, stronger contact tracing and a review of the Quarantine Act.
The inspection proposal was moved by Senator Francis Faduyile (Ondo South), a professor of medicine, who wanted the Senate committees on Health, Primary Healthcare, Development and Disease Control, Aviation, Interior and Appropriations to assess the preparedness of major entry points and report back within four weeks.
But Senate President Godswill Akpabio questioned the need for lawmakers to undertake physical inspections during an active outbreak, warning that such visits could expose them to infection.
The proposal was subsequently put to a vote, with the majority of senators rejecting the inspection visits.
The chamber, however, retained calls for stronger institutional measures, including urgent funding. Senator Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) urged the Federal Government to draw from the Service Wide Vote to finance immediate containment activities, warning that delays in releasing approved resources could weaken the response.
Faduyile also advocated compulsory screening of international arrivals, including health declarations, temperature checks and symptom assessments, as well as enhanced screening of travellers who had visited or transited through affected areas within the preceding 21 days.
He further called for adequate personnel, thermal scanners, personal protective equipment, trained Port Health officers and isolation rooms at entry points, alongside functional isolation and treatment centres in all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The senator also urged a review of the Quarantine Act of 1926 to bring the legal framework in line with contemporary disease surveillance and public health standards.
Senators Sadiq Umar, Ekong Sampson and Tahir Monguno separately advocated greater use of technology in contact tracing, stronger healthcare preparedness and an update of the quarantine legislation.
*Reps seek early isolation camps, invoke 2014 response plan
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives called for increased public awareness and early preparation of isolation camps following confirmation of the case in the FCT.
The lawmakers also urged the Federal Government to draw on the 2014 Ebola response blueprint, which helped Nigeria contain the previous outbreak, while the House Committee on Infectious Disease was mandated to act on the resolutions.
The House’s intervention came as the Federal Government sought to reassure Nigerians that containment measures were already in place.
*FG reassures Nigerians of curtailment
The Presidential Task Force on Ebola said Nigeria was collaborating with Uganda, with the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, stressing that the priority was to prevent the infection from spreading within the country.
“All I can tell you is that we are collaborating with our sister African nation, Uganda. What is important is that we have found this one case. We are doing contact tracing, and we are putting containment measures in place to ensure that it does not enter our population,” Pate said.
He said Nigeria had competent public health institutions and had successfully managed Ebola in 2014, urging Nigerians to remain vigilant without resorting to panic.
Pate said the government would continue to provide information as it became available, adding that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention had activated its incident management system.
“It is one case. It is an imported case, and we are containing it. And we will continue to take measures. If the situation changes, we will come out and inform Nigerians,” he said.
The minister added that the Federal Government had reviewed response plans and had a coordination mechanism involving the Office of the National Security Adviser, public health institutions and the Ebola task force.
He maintained that Nigeria had the resources and institutional mechanisms required to manage the situation, while urging citizens to comply with public health directives.
*Uganda’s position
However, Uganda’s Ministry of Health rejected reports suggesting that the country currently has an Ebola outbreak.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by the Director of Health Services, Prof Charles Olaro, the ministry said the woman’s travel through Uganda was not sufficient evidence that she contracted the virus there.
“The location of exposure remains under investigation,” the Ugandan authorities said, adding that travel through Uganda alone could not establish where the infection occurred.
Uganda also said the Nigerian government had yet to provide detailed information about the woman’s travel itinerary and clinical history, which it considered necessary for further investigation and any related contact-tracing efforts.
The Ugandan ministry said it was nevertheless strengthening screening and public health controls at points of entry following the Nigerian case, while maintaining limited provisions for humanitarian and diplomatic movements.
The confirmed patient remains in isolation in the FCT, while 44 people identified as contacts are being monitored.
WHO said investigations are continuing to establish the likely source of the infection and reconstruct the patient’s full travel and exposure history.
*Chair of the Presidential Task Force, Gbajabiamila, speaks
In the meantime, the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness, Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats has assured Nigerians it can handle Ebola in the country.
The Chairman of the Task Force and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, said this while speaking to newsmen after the group’s emergency meeting at the State House on Wednesday.
Gbajabiamila said the Task Force has been working behind the scenes since it was inaugurated in June this year. He added that this is why it was easy to detect the index case discovered yesterday.
“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.
He assured Nigerians that the Task Force would strengthen whatever needed strengthening, the protocols, and ensure more rigorous enforcement moving forward.
“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.
He appealed to all Nigerians to respond to calls for compliance for the good of all.
