A delegation of the Federal Government and Lagos State Government has visited the Synagogue Church of All Nations in order to continue the fight against the dreaded Ebola virus.
The delegation, led by Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, comprised officials of Federal Government and Lagos State Government, visited the church in the areas seeking to work with the church in the areas of technical assistance, medical advice and training.
The purpose of the visit, according to the officials, was to ensure no victim of the deadly disease comes to the church from any of the affected countries undetected, in continuation of efforts to prevent the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease into the country.
Prophet T. B. Joshua
In a meeting with the General Overseer of The Synagogue Church of All Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua, the delegation urges the prophet to explore ways of ensuring members of the congregation do not include residents or people from the affected countries.
Director of the Centre for Disease Control, Professor Abdulsalami Nasidi, said the visit was to inform the church leader of how deadly the Ebola virus is and as well ensure it does not get to the country having become such a big problem in the sub-region and already affecting the economies of the countries involved.
Nasidi described the visit as “positive engagement mission” before adding: “We are here to engage you positively. We know the powers of this House and your powers and we are duty-bound to protect you and your congregation.”
Nasidi noted that so far there is only one imported case of Ebola virus in the country and the governments are “duty bound to make sure it doesn’t escape into Nigeria”, adding: “We do not doubt the power that God has given you.
In his remarks at the meeting, Idris said the delegation decided to pay the visit to the SCOAN in recognition of the church as an international Christian centre with congregation comprising people from all over the world including the countries of the West African sub-region already affected by Ebola.
“We have our strategies that we intend to share with you. Again, we need to know the resources you have here because whether it is one or two cases, if they are allowed to get out, it is a major problem.
“We are here to work together on how to contain this disease,” Idris said.
In his response, Prophet Joshua promised to work with the government to ensure that the disease does not spread into the country, saying he would put some measures in place to ensure that people from the already affected countries do not enter Nigeria.
“I love my country and I will be ready to work with you. Even if it is a rumour, there is need to secure our environment to ensure that it is safe.”