By Our Reporter

Ali Pate, coordinating minister of health and social welfare, says Nigerians should remain vigilant, shun panic, and stop spreading misinformation about Ebola virus disease.

Speaking on Wednesday after meeting with Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to the president in Abuja, Pate said citizens should rely on verified public health information from trusted sources rather than circulating false rumours.

The minister said the federal government is collaborating with Uganda to manage the situation.

“All I can tell you is that we are collaborating with our sister African nation of Uganda,” Pate said.

“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.”

He urged Nigerians to remain calm and communicate responsibly, adding that the situation should be taken seriously without causing fear.

“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 rumours,” Pate said.

The minister said Nigeria has the public health institutions and expertise needed to respond to the situation.

Pate added that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) had activated its incident management system (IMS), with response teams working round the clock and the relevant task force coordinating containment efforts.

“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 this public health crisis,” he said.

He said the government would continue to monitor developments and provide updates as verified information became available.

“If the situation changes, we’ll come out and inform Nigerians,” he said.

Pate reiterated that the immediate priority was to contain the imported case and prevent its spread within the population.

The meeting between Pate and Gbajabiamila came nearly 24 hours after the federal government announced a confirmed case of Ebola disease in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

On Tuesday, Pate said 44 close contacts had been identified for tracing to prevent further transmission.

He added that the patient, a woman who recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda, had been admitted to a private hospital in the FCT, where she received care for several days before the diagnosis was confirmed.

By Chidera Orji

In a continuous effort by the Commandant General of Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps(NSCDC), to drive for excellence in the Corps, the Director of Legal Services (DLS), Barrister A.K. Alilu, paid a working visit to the Delta State Command of NSCDC, to interact with HODs, HOUs, Area Commanders, Divisional Officers, Tactical Commanders and Beat Supervisors on the need to uphold professionalism and ensure that all operational activities are carried out in accordance with the law.

The visit, according to a press statement by DSC Anthony Uchenn CDPRO of the command, became necessary to improve personnel’s understanding of the legal framework guiding the discharge of their duties, particularly in the areas of complaints, arrest, investigation, detention, evidence gathering and prosecution.

During his interaction with officers, Barr Alilu laid emphasis on the importance of due process in handling cases and ensuring that every action taken by personnel is within the ambit of the law.

He made reference to life experiences illustrating proper procedures for making arrests, conducting investigations, submission of evidence and handling of suspects in line with enabling laws, stressing that personnel must know their limits in law and avoid actions that could attract negative publicity for them or the Corps.

The interactive session during which personnel sought clarification on various legal and operational issues relating to arrests, investigations and prosecution was all engaging and it provided an opportunity for officers to gain further insight into the legal implications of their actions while on duty.

The State Commandant, Chinedu F. Igbo, who welcomed Barr. Alilu to the Command, expressed gratitude for the lecture. He commended the DLS for driving home the understanding of the legal framework of NSCDC operations as it would also equip officers with the required knowledge to discharge their duties effectively and professionally.

The Commandant also expressed profound gratitude to the Commandant General, Prof. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, mni, OFR, for his commitment to the growth and development of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.

By Our Reporter

The President of the Prime Environment Cleaners Network Association (PECNA), Barr. Yakubu Mohammed Yazeed, has called on the Federal Government and relevant regulatory agencies to strengthen environmental hygiene and professional cleaning standards as part of Nigeria’s preparedness for infectious disease outbreaks.

Yazeed, who raised the concern following reports of an imported Ebola case in Abuja, questioned the implementation of the country’s disease prevention measures, urging authorities to prioritise routine sanitation rather than concentrate on emergency responses after outbreaks occur.

“How many disease outbreaks must Nigeria experience before we take cleaning and environmental hygiene seriously? Government continues to announce preparedness measures, but where is the evidence of implementation, sustained surveillance and protection of frontline workers?”

In a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, the PECNA president said Nigerians deserved transparency on border screening, early disease detection and the utilisation of emergency preparedness funds.

He, however, stressed the need for investigations to establish the circumstances surrounding the reported case.

Yazeed expressed concern over what he described as the neglect of professional cleaners in national public health preparedness, arguing that their work was essential to maintaining hygienic environments in hospitals, schools, airports, offices and homes.

“We cannot claim to prioritise public health while overlooking the professionals responsible for maintaining hygienic environments in our hospitals, schools, airports, offices and homes.

“Cleanliness must become a culture, not an emergency response. Prevention begins with the standards we maintain every day,” he said.

He said PECNA had recently partnered with the Environmental Health Council of Nigeria (EHCON) to train more than 200 cleaning professionals on appropriate cleaning and disinfection practices in homes and other facilities to help prevent infectious diseases of public health importance.

According to him, the association has also continued to mobilise cleaners, regulators and other industry stakeholders through professional training, industry forums and community sanitation initiatives to improve standards in the cleaning sector.

The PECNA president called on EHCON, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), the Federal Ministries of Health and Environment, as well as relevant state authorities, to establish measurable programmes covering professional training, cleaning standards, occupational safety and infection prevention.

He questioned the availability and enforcement of standards for cleaning contractors, structured training for personnel working in high-risk facilities and safeguards for workers responsible for maintaining hygienic environments.

“Where are the enforceable standards for cleaning contractors? Where are the structured training programmes for cleaners in high-risk facilities? Who ensures that the people protecting our environments are themselves protected?,he queried.

Yazeed also urged cleaning companies to review their standard operating procedures, retrain workers, educate clients and adopt appropriate risk-based cleaning and disinfection practices.

He cautioned that suspected Ebola contamination should be handled by authorised personnel with specialised training, rather than ordinary cleaning staff.

PECNA called for greater transparency in Nigeria’s Ebola preparedness efforts, accountability for preventive measures and emergency funding, stronger enforcement of environmental health standards and the formal inclusion of professional cleaning associations in national infection prevention programmes.

Yazeed said the association had taken steps to improve the capacity of cleaning professionals through training and engagement with regulators, urging the government to complement such efforts with concrete policies and enforcement.

“We have mobilised cleaners, organised trainings and engaged regulators because we understand that cleaning is fundamental to public health. Government must now match these efforts with decisive action.

“Nigeria cannot continue to celebrate emergency responses while neglecting everyday prevention. A nation that fails to take cleaning seriously is compromising an essential part of its public health protection.”

He maintained that integrating professional cleaning into public health planning was necessary to strengthen environmental hygiene and protect workers and members of the public from infectious disease risks.