FG Reacts to Alleged Non-screening of 26 Americans at Lagos Airport

Related stories

Peter Obi’s Dangerous Game By AZU ISHIEKWENE

By AZU ISHIEKWENE Peter Obi has the best chance against...

French president sues Candace Owens over claims his wife is a man

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, filed...

TotalEnergies Warns of Looming Oil Glut

TotalEnergies (NYSE: TTE) reported on Thursday its weakest adjusted...

French Company Secures Ownership of DStv, GOtv in $3 Billion MultiChoice Deal

By Abiola Olawale  A French media conglomerate, Canal+ has finalized...

The Federal Government has countered reports claiming 26 Americans arrived the country through the Murtala Muhammed Inter­national Airport (MMIA), Lagos without undergoing the mandatory COVID-19 screening.

The Americans were reportedly said to have proceeded to Calabar by air using the same flight after arriving Lagos on Monday without screening for Coronavirus.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said contrary to the report, the Americans were screened by the Port Health Authority and the Immigration while the crews did not disembark from the aircraft.covid-19 pandemic

Read also: Coronavirus: U.S Overtakes China in Death Toll; Italy, Spain, France’s Statistics Grim

Mohammed said: “I am aware of the history of the 26 passengers and I have placed a call to the head of Port Health Services who denied the report.

“We have problem with the crude oil production in the Bonga field, so they made an application for the expatriates to come into the country.

“They need to come and carry out some emergency works on the Bonga field and they arrived yesterday.

“They met with the Port Health Authority and immigration that screened them and we have the records to show that they were screened.”

The minister explained that the rule on border closure is that if any aircraft must come to the country on emergency, it must come in with two crews for inbound and outbund flights.

“Any flight approved to come into the country now must come with two crews so that there will be no way any of the crew members will get down and interract.

“But if they must come down, they must go into 14 days quarantine,

“It is wrong for the media to be publishing fake news that will frustrate the efforts of not just government but the Frontline people in this fight which are the health workers, the immigration and others.

“They are the ones that are at the highest risk of infection. When they make those sacrifices, to save the country it is wrong for a newspaper to report with a banner headline that they did not do their jobs when in actual fact, they did.

“Another implication of this which the newspaper did not know is that they have presented to the entire world as if Nigeria is not taking this fight seriously,” he added.

'Dotun Akintomide
'Dotun Akintomide
'Dotun Akintomide's journalism works intersect business, environment, politics and developmental issues. Among a number of local and international publications, his work has appeared in the New York Times. He's a winner of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Award. Currently, the Online Editor at The New Diplomat, Akintomide has produced reports that uniquely spoke to Nigeria's experience on Climate Change issues. When Akintomide is not writing, volunteering or working on a media project, you can find him seeing beautiful sites like the sandy beaches that bedecked the Lagos coastline.

Subscribe

- Never miss a story with notifications

- Gain full access to our premium content

- Browse free from up to 5 devices at once

Latest stories

NDN
Latest News
Akpabio vs Natasha: High-Stakes Drama as Immigration Officers Seize, Release Natasha's Passport at Abuja Airport Peter Obi’s Dangerous Game By AZU ISHIEKWENEFrench president sues Candace Owens over claims his wife is a manTotalEnergies Warns of Looming Oil GlutFrench Company Secures Ownership of DStv, GOtv in $3 Billion MultiChoice Deal2027 Calculations: Tinubu's Minister, Nentawe Yilwatda Takes Over as APC National Chairman, Succeeds Ganduje#EndSARS: Court Orders IGP Egbetokun to Pay N10m for Violating Protesters' RightsFrench Company Secures Ownership of DStv, GOtv in $3 Billion MultiChoice Deal2027: Osun Senators' Defection to APC, a Grave Error, Governor Adeleke’s Aide Blasts Fadahunsi, Fadeyi Mystery Buyer of First Bank Stake Spurs Query From Nigeria’s SECThailand recalls ambassador to Cambodia amid border tensionsFor Aisha Buhari at a time like this By Funke EgbemodeSaraki Blasts Atiku, David Mark, Dino Melaye, Dele Momodu, Other PDP Defectors, Says Mass Exodus Lacks Vision2027: Four Senators Dump PDP as APC Numbers Rise To 70 in Upper Chambers[VIDEO]: Battle Rages As Amaechi Storms Rivers, Pulls Unprecedented Crowd for ADC
X whatsapp