Indications are that Cameroon has shut its sea border against travelers from Nigeria, as passengers have been unable to get vessels to ferry them to Cameroon for the past four days.
Although, Cameroonian authorities have issued no official statement to that effect, however, our correspondent observed that virtually every ship that took off from the Inland Water Ways Beach, the Afikpo Beach and other notable take off points within the Marina axis in Calabar were not be allowed beyond the shores of Nigeria territorial waters.
Feelers suggest that the tactical ban of Nigerian vessels unto Cameroonian territorial waters is a preemptive measure to ensure that the deadly Ebola virus does not spread into the French speaking Central Africa nation.
One of the stranded passenger, a Nigerian-Cameroun based businessman , Austine Agha, said at first when they were told they can’t travel to Cameroun because of Ebola, he thought it was a joke but was shocked to see ships that had already left for Cameroun being turned back.
Lamenting their ordeals, Agha said: “As you can see, most of these passengers are now stranded because the Cameroun/Nigeria border has been sealed off for fear of Ebola. Even the Camerounians, some of them are here, also stranded, no vessel is coming in, no vessel is going out.
Ebola has killed over a thousand in West Africa, but is yet to reach Central Africa.