COVID-19 Quarantine: 18 Percent In-Bound Passengers Not Traceable — Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, says 18 percent of passengers that arrived in Lagos through Murtala Mohammed Airport cannot be traced for COVID-19 quarantine.

Sanwo-Olu made this known on Sunday in the update of the coronavirus pandemic situation in Lagos State.

He said that between May 8, 2021, and July 7, 2021, a total of 50,322 passengers of interest arrived in Lagos via the Murtala Mohammed Airport.

”Of the 50,322 passengers, 18 percent could not be reached by EKOTELEMED because of the provision of either wrong numbers or wrong Nigerian contact details,” the Chief Incident Commander said.

He said that it was the responsibility of passengers to ensure they provided the right details for them to be reached for proper monitoring.

”Going forward, passengers that do not provide the right details, including a phone number they can be reached for monitoring and an address for isolation, will face serious sanctions, including fines and imprisonment according to our Lagos State Coronavirus Law of 2021.

"As dictated by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 (PSC), passengers from red-listed countries (India, South Africa, Brazil, and Turkey) are required to observe mandatory isolation.

'So far, we have successfully isolated 2,386 passengers in Lagos State. Of this number, 15 percent have absconded,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He said that sanctions were being recommended and had already been meted out to defaulters.

The governor said that the sanctions for foreigners were revocation of their Permanent Residency and deportation; while the sanction for Nigerians is prosecution to the full extent of the Lagos State COVID-19 Law.

He also said that greater vigilance was required at this time in the churches and mosques and other places of religious worship.

Sanwo-Olu said that the state was pleased that religious houses were now open for worship, after the lengthy closures of 2020, however, worshippers must not be carried away by the illusion that all was now back to normal.

"This is especially critical, as Sallah approaches, in a little over a week from now.

"The festivities will no doubt bring people together in large numbers and create conditions that can sadly cause the spread of the coronavirus. We must not allow this to happen.

"For this reason, we are mandating full compliance with all protective protocols.

"There must be compulsory use of masks in all public places, social distancing, temperature checks, provisions for hand-washing and sanitizers, and a maximum of 50 percent occupancy in enclosed spaces,” he said.