By Dare Ojelade, Lagos
The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) provided a pleasant surprise for a recent returnee from the United Kingdom (UK) when its officials called on him to know his health status after 14 days of his return to Nigeria.
The Gazelle News.com reports that Mr Oluwaseyi Oduyela, Nigeria-born US journalist came into Nigeria Monday, 16 March, 2020, in the wake of the outbreak of the virus in the country.
At the Airport, all the passengers were given forms to fill where they all supplied their details. Their temperature was also checked with those with unusual high temperature separated from those with normal one.
Seyi thought the forms they filled was just routine and forget everything about his experience at the airport. “I said that they may not do anything with our forms,” he told Thegazellenews.com.
Seyi on his own went into self isolation.
He was proved wrong.
On the morning of Wednesday, 1 April, 2020, exactly 14 days, after his return to Nigeria, Seyi received a visitor in his hotel room. It was Gafar Oyewole, a friend. He informed him that the NCDC officials have been trying to reach him.
What NCDC did was to call Gafar who Seyi gave his particulars as his next-of-kin. They have tried to reach Seyi with no avail hence they had to call Gafar.
Seyi saw the missed calls on his phone and returned the call and he was informed that they were indeed NCDC officials.
They wanted to know his health status, particularly if he has any symptom of the virus, to which he responded that he is okay.
“I must say that though some aspects of the government may appear dysfunctional, I give kudos to the Ministry of Health for the way it has handled this pandemic.
“It certainly was not like this where I was coming from and Emmanuel Ogebe shared his experience with me on his return to the US which was nothing near the Nigerian way of handling it at the airport,” he said.
Seyi later gave account of his experience on his Facebook page and it is reproduced here below:
After all not everything is dysfunctional in Nigeria
On Thursday, my friend Wole Gafar came to visit me and on getting to my hotel, he said the NCDC had been trying to reach me without luck. He wondered how they got his number. I didn’t believe him because he jokes a lot. I looked at my phone and I saw three missed calls from an unknown number.
I explain to Wole that we filled a comprehensive form from the Ministry of Health while we were on the plane from the UK and I provided information of my next of kin in Nigeria since I always travel on a visa to Nigeria.
I called the unknown number, at first it was busy and I called the second time, someone answered and it wa NCDC.
They said they’ve been trying to reach me and I apologized for missing their calls. The gentleman on the phone was very courteous and professional.
It was a courtesy call to check on me after my 14 days of arrival in Nigeria. He asked me if I had any symptoms, ran temperature and all that and my answers were in the negative. He knew that I flew in on March 16. The gentleman also thanked me for returning their call.
I was impressed and I had expressed this to a friend the day I arrived that on our arrival, the Ministry of health did not only use thermal camera to check our temperatures we were arranged in line with social distancing.
I complained that they may not do anything with our forms until I got the call two days ago.
I must say that though some aspects of the government may appear dysfunctional, I give kudos to the Ministry of Health for the way it has handled this pandemic.
It certainly was not like this where I was coming from and Emmanuel Ogebe shared his experience with me on his return to the US which was nothing near the Nigerian way of handling it at the airport.
Whether you believe the figures in Nigeria or not please take precautions and listen to instructions.
I know that the numbers of cases and deaths in the US, UK, Italy and Spain are scary, if they had taken the issue seriously it won’t be like this and they also have cases of recoveries too. I’m sure it will get better in those places soon but at a very high cost.
Let’s all stay positive and supportive.
Stop sharing those negative and gruesome stories.
When you’re worried find someone to talk to, let’s check in on one another.
This shall surely pass.
Copyright: The Gazelle News.com
