**”Demands emergency funding, tighter airport screening, modern quarantine law after reported Abuja case
Twelve years after Nigeria earned international recognition for containing the Ebola outbreak of 2014, the Senate has raised the alarm over gaps in airport screening, emergency funding and public health laws, warning that the country cannot afford to repeat the mistakes that could allow the deadly virus to spread.
The concern followed reports of a confirmed Ebola case in Abuja, prompting lawmakers at Tuesday’s plenary to demand urgent measures to strengthen surveillance, protect public health and prevent further transmission.
Senator Sadiq Suleiman Umar, representing Kwara North, said Nigeria had performed exceptionally well during the previous outbreak and must not allow its hard-won reputation to suffer.
Nigeria, he recalled, “did fantastically well” in 2014 and received international recognition for its response.
He insisted that the country must sustain that record by preventing further spread of the virus.
The debate was triggered by a motion sponsored by Senator Francis Adedayo Faduyile, who described the situation as “a major, major, major emergency” and called for compulsory health screening of all international passengers arriving in Nigeria.
The proposed measures include health declaration forms, temperature checks, symptom assessments, isolation facilities and closer monitoring of travellers who had visited or passed through affected areas within the preceding 21 days.
However, Senator Ali Ndume raised concerns about the effectiveness of existing screening procedures, recounting an incident involving a traveller who arrived from Kenya and allegedly passed through an entry point without a temperature check or other health screening.
“Assuming he was infected, how would the airport staff have known?” Ndume asked, challenging aviation authorities to address what he described as a serious gap in border health surveillance.
Other senators warned that screening should not be restricted to travellers arriving from countries already officially listed as affected, arguing that infected persons could travel through locations where outbreaks had yet to be identified. They also supported exit screening for departing passengers during declared public health emergencies.
But beyond the immediate concerns over airport surveillance, the debate exposed another problem: whether the agencies responsible for containing an outbreak have the funding and legal backing required to respond effectively.
Senators insisted that the Federal Government should not wait until the 2027 budget cycle before releasing emergency funds. They consequently amended the motion to urge the government to provide money to relevant agencies through the service-wide vote.
Ndume referred to an alleged N10bn allocation for Ebola control, but questions arose during the debate over whether the money had been formally approved and released.
The uncertainty prompted lawmakers to demand adequate funding for the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and Port Health Services, as well as an investigation to establish whether previously allocated funds had reached the intended agencies and been properly spent.
The Senate also turned its attention to the legal framework governing disease control, with Senator Muhammad Tahir Monguno, representing Borno North, describing the Quarantine Act of 1926 as outdated and inadequate for modern public health challenges.
Monguno argued that health officials at airports and other entry points needed legislation that reflected current technology and international standards. The Senate consequently urged the National Assembly to replace the century-old law with modern public health legislation aligned with the International Health Regulations 2005.
Ndume urged the Senate Committee on Judiciary to begin the review immediately rather than wait for the executive to initiate action.
The lawmakers also debated whether vaccination should form part of the immediate response. Senator Ireti Kingibe, representing the Federal Capital Territory, proposed vaccination points at motor parks and airports to protect residents and travellers.
Faduyile, however, cautioned that any vaccination programme must reflect the particular Ebola strain involved, noting that the Bundibugyo and Sudan strains do not have approved vaccines. He also questioned the practicality of mass vaccination at transport hubs without appropriate medical guidance.
Senator Mohammed Adamu Aliero, representing Kebbi Central, observed that the Ministry of Health and the NCDC had already initiated several measures covered by the motion. He nevertheless supported the Senate’s intervention, arguing that sustained vigilance and coordinated action remained necessary.
At the end of the debate, the Senate directed the Ministry of Health, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and the Nigeria Immigration Service to ensure that major entry points had sufficient trained health personnel, thermal scanners, protective equipment and isolation facilities.
It also called for treatment centres to be ready across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, while urging hotels, ministries, event centres and other public facilities to strengthen hygiene measures and provide hand sanitisers.
Lawmakers further discussed introducing temperature checks and handwashing stations within the National Assembly itself.
To ensure implementation, Senate committees on Health, Aviation, Interior, Appropriations and other relevant areas were directed to inspect major entry points and submit their findings within four weeks. The Committee on Legislative Compliance was assigned to monitor compliance with the resolutions.
Nigeria’s experience in 2014 demonstrated that early detection, contact tracing and coordinated public health action could contain Ebola. The Senate now wants those safeguards reinforced, alongside better funding and stronger laws.
But the central question remains whether the government and relevant agencies will translate the lawmakers’ resolutions into concrete action quickly enough to prevent further transmission.