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More Nigerians living in West African nations have started returning to the country through land borders following the rise in COVID-19 cases globally
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, at a press conference organised by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja on Wednesday, said 67 persons had already arrived at the country’s land border.
The minister, who did not indicate the land border the returnees were, stated that 24 more would come today (Thursday).
The minister stated that both batches (91) of returnees would be isolated for 14 days and put under surveillance for possible COVID-19 symptoms before they could proceed to their different destinations in the country.
The Nigeria Immigration Service, in a statement later on Wednesday, confirmed that the 67 Nigerians had arrived at the Seme border in Lagos State.
Osun 58 indigenes top list of 67 returnees
The Comptroller General of the NIS, Muhammad Babandede, said the service officials received the 67 returnees and after thorough profiling, handed them over to the Lagos State Government.
In a statement by the NIS Public Relations Officer, Mr Sunday James, the comptroller general said 58 of the returnees were from Osun State
He said the NIS “handed them over to the Lagos State Government, represented by the Special Assistant Health to the Executive Governor of Lagos State, Dr Tunde Ajayi, after thorough profiling with the following details: Osun State, 58; Lagos State, four; Oyo State, two; Ondo State, one; Edo, one; Ogun-one, total 67 returnees.”
The PUNCH gathered that the Lagos State Government had accommodated the 67 returnees in some hotels in Badagry, where they would be quarantined for two weeks.
A source, who confided in one of our correspondents, said they would be joined by 24 people who would arrive on Thursday.
Last month, 1[b]27 Nigerians, mostly from Osun State, arrived in the country through the Idiroko border in Ogun State.
The state Governor, Dapo Abiodun, handed the returnees over to his Osun State counterpart[/b] , Gboyega Oyetola, who isolated them in Ejigbo. Eighteen of the returnees have tested positive for COVID-19.
The PUNCH had, on Tuesday reported that 67 persons were stopped by security agents at the Seme border.
According to the report, the security agents notified the Lagos State Government, which insisted that returnees must be in quarantine for 14 days.
It was also reported that the Lagos State Government had made arrangements to accommodate the returnees in some Badagry hotels, which had no other guests.
At the PTF press conference on Wednesday, the minister of foreign affairs said the Federal Government contacted the governments of Togo and Benin, which allowed the 67 Nigerians to pass through their territories.
The minister said, “They are now at the Nigerian border and we got the authorisation for them to come into the country. They will be in isolation for the mandatory 14 days when they have come in.
“We have another 24 Nigerians in a hotel in Togo. They are going to be tested. We have also got the government of Benin’s approval for them to move through Béninoise territory to come into Nigeria, possibly by tomorrow.
“We’ve also arranged where they will all be confined when they come into the country. That has been going very smoothly and, for this, we are extremely grateful to the governments of Togo and the Republic of Benin, which have cooperated with us and made this possible.”
Onyeama added that there was a doctor who was part of the team “caught outside the country,” adding that the doctor had made his way to the Republic of Benin.
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