More needs to be done to prevent the deadly ebola virus from entering the UK “through the back door”, a Fife minister just returned from Nigeria has warned.
Pastor Joe Nwokoye of the Zion Praise Centre in Mitchell Street, Kirkcaldy, said he had been very impressed with measures being taken by the Nigerian authorities to screen arrivals and departures at Lagos International Airport.
But he said he was “shocked” when his health was not checked on his return to Scotland via Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.
He then spent several hours mixing with other passengers in the lounge before flying on to Edinburgh.
Again, his health was not checked on arrival in Scotland.
Pastor Joe, 55, who was born into poverty in Nigeria, travelled to Anambra state in the east of Nigeria where he spent three weeks educating village children how basic hygiene could prevent the spread of ebola.
But he believes the UK needs to take a leaf out of Nigeria’s book.
Now back in Kirkcaldy, he told The Courier: “I was actually surprised when I arrived in Nigeria at how tough the measures were.
“I had to fill in a form on the plane asking if I had any illnesses. They then took all the passengers’ temperatures even before getting to immigration.
“On my way out of Nigeria they took my temperature again and compared this with my arrival temperature.
“They asked if I had been to any funerals or weddings. They stamped my boarding card to say I had been screened.
“But in Amsterdam, even though my flight had come from west Africa, there were no checks.
“Then, on to Edinburgh, nothing. Prevention is everything with ebola and I think the UK needs to do more to avoid a catastrophe,” he continued.
With a population of 173 million, and a handful of recent cases, Pastor Joe said Nigeria was determined to stay ebola-free.
Out in the villages, local government was encouraging children to use hand sanitisers. Prevention was the key.
But with 5,000 deaths from ebola in west Africa so far, he also said perspective was important.
Thousands die from hunger in the region every week and this is rarely reported by the world’s media.
A Department of Health spokesman said:“Enhanced screening arrangements for people travelling from the affected regions are in place at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham airports and at Eurostar at St Pancras.
“Passengers travelling on UK-bound tickets from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea where we have advanced passenger information, will be asked to fill in a questionnaire and have their temperature taken.”