Ebola: Liberia envoy laments citizens’ harassment in Nigeria

The Liberian Ambassador to Nigeria Mr Al-Hassan Conteh has condemned what he described as the rising spate of harassment and stereotyping being meted out against citizens of his country because of the case of the Liberian man who ‘imported’ Ebola virus into Nigeria.

Mr. Patrick Sawyer, an American-Liberian on the 22nd of July flew into Lagos from Lome. He tested positive to Ebola just two hours after arrival. He died days later. It was this singular incident that spiraled the cases of Ebola being reported in the country as all the 48 passengers on board with him in the flight, the airport officials and the medical team that attended to him are either quarantined or being kept under surveillance.

Six of the persons that came in contact with Mr. Patrick Sawyer have been confirmed Ebola positive while one, a nurse had died already.

Ambassador Conteh layed his complaint in Abuja yesterday at the ministry of foreign affairs during a meeting with the Nigerian Health Minister, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu to intimate the diplomatic community on Nigeria’s efforts at arresting the situation.

“The attention of our embassy has been drawn to several cases of harassment on Liberians based on stereotype and collective guilt especially in Lagos. I think it is important we indicate in our campaigns that association does not mean causation,” the Liberian envoy said.

“That the index case is from Liberia does not mean that all Liberians in Nigeria are infected with Ebola. I appeal to the Nigeria government to include it in their radio jingles that association is not causation,” he said

He also lamented the use of cartoon by a Nigerian newspaper to portray Liberians as carriers of Ebola virus.

Also speaking was the Deputy High Commissioner of Sierra Leone to Nigeria, Major General Alfred C. Nelson-Williams, who said his country has also declared a state of emergency to stop the spread of the virus.