National Confab reconvenes to consider final report

The National Conference will resume on Monday (today) as delegates reconvene to consider the final report of the conference.

The conference had adjourned abruptly on July 14 without being able to reach agreement on two major controversial issues of resource control and the beneficiaries of the proposed intervention fund for states currently facing destruction as a result of attack by the members of the terrorist Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

The conference’s Assistant Secretary, Media and Communications, Mr. James Akpandem, had told one of our correspondents on Friday that the final report of the conference, which he said was up of four volumes, was ready.

He said copies of the report were being produced and that each delegate would be given copies on resumption.

However, the delegates would be reconvening amid the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in the country with members expressing fears concerning their health.

According to the punch a female delegate, called their correspondent to register her concern said, “I hope that the conference will take into note the need to avoid the spread of Ebola at the conference.

“This is because some of our fellow conferees might have traveled to infested areas or even has contact with those already infected with the virus.

“We have to make sure that we are all save because after there is life after the conference.”

Asked the precautionary measure she had taken on her own, she said she had bought some bottles of hand sanitizer which she said she would be using intermittently

Another delegate from the North-Central, who corroborated the first delegate, said each delegate would be expected to handle his or her personal healthcare.

“We are not saying that we should bring health certificate to the conference, but we can as well make sure that we take precautionary measures in order to make sure that we are not infected,” he added.

However, the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, has said that his ministry will not make any arrangement to screen the 492 delegates at the National Conference as they reconvene in Abuja on Monday (today).

Onyebuchi told The PUNCH that there would also be no provision of sanitisers for the delegates, but that the confab’s secretariat should take necessary measures to protect the health of the delegates.

When asked if there would be any provision toward preventing a possible spread of the Ebola virus as the confab members reconvene to deliberate on pending issues, the health minister said, “No.”

“No such plan to screen them (the delegates),” he said in a text message to our correspondent. The Secretariat of the conference should take measures to ensure good sanitary conditions,” Onyebuchi added.

Chukwu had announced on Friday that no fewer than 139 people had been placed under surveillance following their alleged contact with the Liberian victim of the deadly Ebola virus, Patrick Sawyer.

Addressing a press briefing in Lagos, Onyebuchi said two new cases of Ebola infection had been recorded in Lagos, which now brings to nine the number of cases recorded in the country so far.

The minister said aside the two fresh cases there were also six suspected cases which had not been confirmed.

THE PUNCH