Babatunde Fashola, the Lagos State Governor has assured foreigners willing to visit or invest in the country that Lagos State, häving successfully eradicated the EVD was now safe and free from all infectious diseases. He says the state has the capacity to combat any infectious disease, including the Ebola Virus Disease, should it rear its ugly head again. Fashola, who was represented by his Deputy, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, said this during a programme tagged, ‘Lagos Welcomes Visitors’ organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism in conjunction with the state’s Ministry of Health.
He said before Ebola outbreak, the government had put in place measures that helped it contain the virus and prevent its spread in Nigeria as the state was the centre where all Ebola patients across the country were brought to for treatment.
He said, “Despite the fact that we did not expect Ebola in our state, we rose to the occasion and ensured that the disease was stamped out of the state and indeed Nigeria. Lagos being the economic nerve center of the country and the most populous state in the nation is aware of the importance of capacity building.
“We have over the years built our capacity to attend to any emergency knowing that Lagos belongs to all of us because we are conscious of the social contract we had with the people of the state, just as we are committed to good governance. The state more than ever before is safe and secure for visitors and tourist because it has always been our objective to make Lagos a city where all can live and work.”
Speaking on the impact of the EVD outbreak on the hospitality industry, the General Manager, Wheatbaker Hotel, Mr. Simon Grinrod, said although no hotel in the state recorded a case or a suspected case, the outbreak still affected it in a way, just as he said the outbreak made them improve on their hygiene.
