WHO’s Country Director in Nigeria, Mr. Rui Vaz, has promised to give technical support to the Rivers State government to ensure that the disease was controlled.
Vaz, who spoke when he led a delegation of the organisation on a visit to the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Sampson Parker, said early diagnosis was crucial to the control of Ebola.
Describing the global health organisation as a technical agency rather than a financial organisation, Vaz commended the commitment of the state towards tackling the disease.
He said, “I will like to highlight that Ebola can be contained and we are going to contain it, there is no doubt. But everything depends on all of us. It is not only the responsibility of the Ministry of Health. This is a cross-cutting issue; it requires attention, and the critical matter is the leadership and ownership of the process.
“WHO is in the country to provide technical support. We are a technical agency; we are not a financial agency. It is very important to highlight that there is a strong commitment by the governor and the commissioner, and also other entities. I see also the high involvement in the response of the private sector.
“The most important thing in Ebola control is the early diagnosis of any potential suspected cases and takes necessary precautions, in terms of isolation where it is needed, and other measures to stop the chain of infection.”
Vaz pointed out that WHO had deployed its officials in Rivers to establish an Emergency Operation Centre immediately it learnt of the first case of Ebola in the state.
He said, “Rivers State is an important economic front in this country; that requires some particular attention. WHO as a technical agency, since the information of the first case, we deployed immediately, our colleagues from Lagos and they came here and first, they helped to establish the emergency operation centre (EOC) and it is already done.
Parker had earlier told journalists during a briefing that the state government had succeed to a considerable extent in tracing those that had primary contact with the late Enemuo, who died at the Good Heart Hospital in Port Harcourt.
“As at Sunday, contact tracing was going on. But on Monday, we had a report that almost all of them have been contacted. We now have 96 per cent coverage, which is huge and which is a good success.
“By now, as we are talking, they would have finished everything. So, we are on it and almost all of them have been contacted,” the health commissioner added.
He, however, pointed accusing finger at the parastatals that managed the nation’s airports for the lapses that paved the way for the diplomat, Olu-Ibukun Koye, to sneak into Rivers State through the Port Harcourt International Airport.