President Goodluck Jonathan has insisted that the N1.9 billion he recently approved is for the containment of the Ebola Virus Disease in the country.
This is contrary to the claim by Health Minister Onyebuchi Chukwu that the fund was meant for the overhaul of the entire health sector.
The president spoke Saturday at Dutse International Airport, Jigawa State, where he flagged off the airlift of the first set of intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for this year’s hajj exercise.
Jonathan, who was represented by Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo, explained that the Federal Government earmarked N1.9 billion as the support for states to contain the spread of the virus.
Recalling that his administration had supported Lagos State with N200 million to contain the disease, the president assured that all the states of the federation would be assisted to fight the epidemic.
Jonathan also disclosed that his government had extended its support to some neigbouring countries to contain the spread of the disease.
The president charged all Nigeria’s pilgrims to pray for the country to surmount the current security challenges.
“I believe all pilgrims are aware of the challenges facing our country. These challenges require not only dedication of the leadership but also prayers from every pilgrim. We should therefore be persistent in our prayers for peace, progress and prosperity of our beloved country”, he said.
In his remarks, the Sultan of Sokoto and Permanent National Amirul Hajj, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, commended the federal government’s towards containing the spread of Ebola.
The Sultan noted that the efforts had made this year’s hajj possible for Nigerian pilgrims.
He, however, implored the pilgrims to present themselves for all necessary medical tests to be carried out on them.
The Sultan also asked the pilgrims to pray for Nigeria to defeat all the evils in the country; while urging all Nigerians to collaborate in eliminating the current security challenges in the country.
The chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Muhammad Bello, said the first set of 530 pilgrims from Jigawa State would be airlifted yesterday at the Dutse International Airport.
Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido thanked the NAHCON for choosing his state as the centre to flag off this year’s hajj operation.
