Worried by the rapid rate at which the Coronavirus epidemic is spreading across the globe, the Senate on Thursday asked the federal government to henceforth quarantine any international traveller coming into the country from China.
Specifically, the upper legislative chamber stressed the need for government to ensure that all travellers into the country are properly screened at all international airports with a view to preventing the virus from being transmitted and spread among Nigerians.
The Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan, gave the charge following a matter of urgent national importance raised via Order 43 of the Senate Standing Rules by the Senate Deputy Leader, Senator Ajayi Boroffice.
He said that rather than isolating the travellers from China, the Nigerian government should be pro-active in handling the scourge by quarantining the travellers from the Asian nation.
He said: “We must be prepared. We must take all the necessary measures at our ports – airports, seaports. If someone is coming from China, he should be quarantined, not self isolation.”.
The Senate President further said: “The fact that we are over 100 million in population doesn’t mean we should lose anyone, every life is important to us and must be protected.”
