Dignitaries invited for the 16th edition of the Bayelsa State Transparency Briefing were screened for the Ebola Virus Disease on Monday.
Political appointees, traditional rulers, captains of industries and journalists were subjected to thorough scrutiny before they were allowed to the Banquet Hall in Yenagoa, the venue of the programme.
Health workers were mobilised to the entrance of the venue with some electronic devices and hand sanitisers for the screening.
There have been Ebola scare in the state since victims of the virus were identified in Lagos and Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.
But the Governor of the state, Mr. Seriake Dickson, after his resumption from his two-week leave declared that the state was free of the virus.
“The public should not panic. There is no known case of Ebola up till now in Bayelsa,” he said.
He said the committee on Ebola chaired by his Commissioner for Health, Dr. Ayibatonye Owei, has been making required efforts to protect the state from Ebola.
He, however, said the Ebola problem was not yet over following its discovery in the neighbouring Rivers State.
Dickson in his first public outing after his holiday advised the people of the state to remain vigilant and ensure high level of hygiene in their daily activities.
He further appealed to them to report cases of Ebola symptoms to the government and to desist from seeking cure from religious and spiritual homes.
Addressing people in the state, he said: “l call on all Bayelsa to continue being vigilant. When you notice somebody with such symptoms, it is not the time to run to herbalists or prayer warriors.
“It is not the time for you to start hiding. Come out for the treatment when you have such symptoms.”
