By Oyero Kayode
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, stated on Monday in Abuja during a briefing by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 that the three returnees from Dubai who got infected with coronavirus have shown that pre-evacuation tests were “no guarantee”.
The comes after Premium reporters reports that three of the 256 Nigerians evacuated from Dubai on May 6 and under supervised quarantine in the state, tested positive for the virus.
Responding to a question regarding the development, the minister said, “The Emirates has a mandatory testing system before they board the flight but added that the incident has shown the need for a 14-day mandatory quarantine for all evacuees.
“Our medical experts had told us it was not necessary that they test beforehand and I think that this proves it because the period of gestation is not one that can be necessarily seen immediately.
“So, even if you test, you could actually start seeing (symptoms) some days after the flight. It is not a full-proof way. What we have maintained is the temperature test, close observation, and so on and so forth.
“The positive cases in Lagos go to show that testing beforehand is no guarantee whatsoever.”