In just a matter of hours today, Wednesday, May 6, 2020, the Federal Government will be receiving about 265 Nigerians at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos. Time is 3pm.
Those Nigerians have reportedly boarded an Emirates flight from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) as part of measures to evacuate them from different parts of the world following the rampaging Covid-19.
This is the first batch of the evacuation, which the Federal Government, through the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, on Monday, said will involve airlifting of Nigerians from other countries such as United States, United Kingdom (UK), China, South Africa, France, India and a host of others.
The Minister said about 4,000 Nigerians have indicated interest to come back home, adding that the government, despite its constraints, will try to bring back many Nigerians within the limits of available resources.
A source told our correspondent that these Nigerians were very excited to be coming home because the pandemic has indeed caused a myriad of challenges to them living outside the country.
Meanwhile, Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement on Tuesday said that in accordance with global best practices and guidelines by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the evacuees on arrival in Nigeria will undergo a mandatory 14-day supervised quarantine in a monitored environment .
Spokesman of the Foreign Ministry, Ferdinand Nwonye, said in the statement that adequate arrangements for hotel accommodation, in Lagos and Abuja, have been made for the evacuation exercise.
“The selected hotels have been inspected and certified by the Port Health Services, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Office of the National Security Adviser and Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” he said.
He noted that more discussions are ongoing with British Airways, through the British High Commission in Nigeria, to evacuate about 300 Nigerians from London on Friday, May 8, 2020. He added that the British Airways Flight 9155 will depart London Heathrow Airport, Terminal 5, at 07:10am and arrive Lagos at 1:10pm same day.
“Additional arrangements are equally being made with Ethiopian Airlines to facilitate the evacuation of another batch of evacuees from New York to Abuja on Monday, May 11, 2020.
“The Federal Government wishes to reassure Nigerians of its unwavering commitment to ensuring the welfare and safety of all citizens,” he said.
By Innocent Odoh, Abuja
