150
stranded Nigerian teachers in Sierra Leone, Cote D’Ivoire and Liberia have
reportedly started escaping into Nigeria, following the refusal of the Federal
Government to evacuate them because of the Ebola scourge.
The Nation reports those who escaped from Ebola infected towns and villages, have not gone for any
Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) test in any hospital.
The
development has created panic following the success achieved at containing the
virus in the country. Investigation confirmed that the 150 teachers were sent
to Sierra Leone, Cote D’Ivoire, Liberia, and other countries in West Africa
under the Nigerian Technical Aids Corps Programme, which is coordinated by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The
affected teachers are specialists in Mathematics, English and the sciences, and
they are expected to spend two years in their countries of deployment.
According
to a source, most of the participants in the 2012-2014 set had not been able to
return on account of the Ebola scourge since mid-October, when their programme
ended.
The
source added that the stranded teachers were scheduled to return to Nigeria
between October 15 and 17.
The
highly-placed source said: “Today, no airlines ply the Freetown-Lagos routes
and the teachers and science specialists, under the Federal Government
programme, seem abandoned at the Ebola-ridden countries.
“These
teachers had sent several distress signals to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
for special flight shuttles to evacuate them, but their pleas fell on deaf
ears”.
The
source added: “Some of these teachers have resorted to self-help by escaping
from the Ebola infested communities through Ghana, Tunisia, and Morocco to
return to Nigeria.
“Those
who came back just reunited with their relations without undergoing any
medical test or being quarantined. You can see how we can be flippant in
this country. We seem to have been carried away by the clean bill of health
given to us by the World Health Organization (WHO).
“But
a sizeable number of the teachers are still stranded in their host countries.
The government should save this nation from a fresh Ebola infection by
evacuating these TAC teachers”.
One
of the participants in the programme, who spoke desperately on the telephone,
said: “Some of our colleagues travelled to Nigeria about nine months ago. Then
Ebola broke out and started killing people. They are stranded in Nigeria. They
still have their property here. Some of them have money in banks.
“We
are also stranded too. We cannot move out. As I speak to you, I can’t go to the
market. I just manage to send people to buy food stuff for me in the market to
cook.
“In
fairness to Nigerian embassy officials, they talk to us once in a while; they
advised us to keep a low profile, be careful where we go and be healthy. But
they keep on telling us that they are still expecting orders from the Foreign Affairs
Ministry in Nigeria”.
The
participant added: “One of the embassy officials told us that now that Dr. Pius
Olasanmi is now the head of the Technical Aids Corps Directorate, we will be
transported back to Nigeria. But we have not heard or seen anything concrete.
We are still waiting.
“But
we are now orphans in West African countries; stranded, isolated and lonely. We
don t know whether it is a curse to serve your country. But that is what we are
feeling now. We feel abandoned by Nigeria, our country. We feel abandoned by
President Goodluck Jonathan.
“Please
help us tell President Jonathan to send planes to West African countries to
evacuate us. We are tired of living in these Ebola countries.
“Some
of us live in areas that are two, five or eight hours to the capitals of these
countries.
“One
of our colleagues called from Sierra Leone to say that markets are just
reopening and that schools closed since August till further notice.
“An
ambassador in one of the countries invited some of our colleagues and told us
that we might be evacuated before November 20. But we are not sure how this is
going to work out. It appears as if they want to give us money, so we come to
Nigeria by road, with all the risk of contracting Ebola along the way on our
trip home”.
“Why
can’t President Jonathan direct that a plane be chartered to stop at all the
capitals to transport us and then Nigerian medical workers can do further
medical test on us before we re-enter the country?
“Are our lives worthless
that government cannot charter a plane to transport us from all West African
countries?” the participant queried.
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