The Liberian Government was aware that Patrick
Sawyer, its citizen who brought the Ebola virus
into Nigeria, had possibly contracted the virus
from his late sister, yet cleared him to travel to
Nigeria for a conference organised by the
Economic Community of West African States
[ECOWAS], PREMIUM TIMES can authoritatively
report today.
Documents obtained by this newspaper showed
that Mr. Sawyer’s employers, ArcelorMittal, an
iron mining company, suspended him from work
and isolated him after it became aware that he
had contact with his sister who died of the virus
on July 8.
The company also issued an internal memo to
staff of the company informing them that Mr.
Sawyer had been referred to the Liberian Health
ministry for testing and close observation.
“A family member of an ArcelorMittal Liberia
employee died on Tuesday, July 8th, in Monrovia
due to a confirmed case of the Ebola virus,” the
July 11 edition of Satellite, an internal newsletter
of ArcelorMittal Liberia, said. “The employee had
minimal contact with the victim, at the state
where the virus was infectious.
“Doctors say the risk of potential transfer to any
member of the ArcelorMittal staff or contractors
is very low. The employee has submitted to the
Ministry of Health for a medical examination for
possible Ebola infection, and has also requested
the Ministry of Health to make the result
available to ArcelorMittal Liberia and its close
affiliates.
“There is no evidence to suggest that the
employee has been infected. Under the Ministry
of Health guidelines, the employee is being
monitored on a daily basis and will continue to
do so for a period of 21 days. During this time
the employee will be absent from work.”
The July 25 edition of the Satellite, which
announced Mr. Sawyer’s death, reads:
“Patrick was last at the Buchanan site (of
AncelorMittal) on 9th July when he informed us
about the death of his sister. Having informed
us of this news, Patrick was submitted to the
Ministry of Health for a medical observation and
isolation and requested not to return to work
until he had passed through the incubation
period. He has not been at the Buchanan site or
in any ArcelorMittal office since that time.”
But despite being under isolation and
observation for the deadly disease, the Liberian
Government, through its Deputy Finance
Minister For Fiscal Affairs, Sebastian Muah,
cleared Mr. Sawyer to travel to Nigeria for an
ECOWAS convention in Calabar.
The deputy minister personally admitted
approving the trip in an online discussion forum,
where some Liberian citizens raised questions
about his action and competence.
Mr. Muah could not be reached for comments
on Monday. His mobile telephone was switched
off the numerous times PREMIUM TIMES called.
But the Liberian Minister of Information, Lewis
Brown, admitted to this newspaper that his
government knew Mr. Sawyer was possibly
infected by the virus before he travelled to
Nigeria.
“I can confirm to you that he was advised by the
Chief Medical Officer at the Ministry of Health
not to leave the country because he was under
observation,” Mr. Brown said by telephone from
Monrovia, the Liberian capital. “It was
regrettable that he left the country while being
observed.
“We felt he had a duty to his colleagues to tell
them that he was under observation for the
disease. We also felt he had a duty to our
country and yours (Nigeria) not to leave Liberia
so as not to endanger the lives of others.”
Asked why a Liberian government official
approved Mr. Sawyer’s trip to Nigeria even when
the administration was watching him for Ebola,
Mr. Brown said he had no information that the
Deputy Minister, Mr. Muah, okayed the journey.
He however explained that such an
administrative slip was possible at the time Mr.
Sawyer left Liberia for Nigeria because at that
time, inter-agency cooperation among
government departments was low.
“It’s possible the health ministry was monitoring
him (Mr. Sawyer) but the finance ministry did
not know,” Mr. Brown said. “It was a slip and we
have learned from it regrettably.”
He said the Patrick Sawyer incidence had now
compelled Liberia to rework its procedures.
“Now the practice is to share the names of
everyone under observation with all other
agencies, including the airport, so they cannot
leave the country,” the minister said.
“Before the Patrick Sawyer incidence, we did not
have that kind of cooperation. We were not
locking people under observation down. We
were only bringing them to the isolation centre
after they showed signs of the disease.”
Liberian newspaper, The New Dawn, which saw
the CCTV footage recorded at the James Spriggs
Payne’s Airport, Monrovia, moments before Mr.
Sawyer boarded an Asky Airline plane to Lagos
on July 20, reported that he looked “terribly ill”
and wore a “sad countenance“ like someone in
severe pain.
Apparently overtaken by “excruciating pain,” he,
at a point, laid flat on his stomach on the floor
in the corridor of the airport.
The paper also reported the footage as capturing
Mr. Sawyer sitting alone and avoiding bodily
contacts with other passengers who came close
to him at the boarding gate of the airport as he
awaited his flight to Lagos.
Mr. Sawyer became severely ill on the plane and
was taken to First Consultant Hospital,
Obalende, from the Murtala Mohammed Airport
in Lagos.
Reports of events before he travelled to Nigeria
and soon after his death have now shown that
top Liberian government officials were aware of
his trip to Nigeria and appeared to have done
nothing to stop him.
The reports have also shown that Mr. Sawyer
did not escape from where he was quarantined
as reported by some newspapers.
In fact, the actions of some Liberian officials
suggested that they were more concerned with
getting Mr. Sawyer to the convention venue in
Calabar and cared very little about the health
risk he posed.
After he died, First Consultant Hospital issued a
statement saying it resisted immense pressure
from Liberian officials to discharge Mr. Sawyer
from the hospital to enable him to attend the
convention in Calabar, with diplomats saying he
had a key role to play at the convention.
Nigeria was free of Ebola until July 20 when Mr.
Sawyer arrived.
He became terribly ill on his flight and was
rushed to the First Consultant Hospital
Obalende, Lagos, where he died on July 24.
Nigeria’s Health Minister, Onyebuchi Chukwu,
said on Monday that although the Liberian
government has apologized for the incidence, it
was pertinent to note that Nigeria was free of
Ebola Virus until its importation by the Liberian-
American.

Source: http://www.saharareporters.com/2014/08/12/how-liberian-govt-cleared-patrick-sawyer-travel-nigeria-ebola

..wicked barstard..may he rot in hell

What next? We start killing Liberians?

But seriously, they should be sanctioned. They are what Yorubas call 'ajegbodo to n wa ni kun ra'

How can someone be so heartless?

This is nt time to start looking 4 whom to blame wat has happened has happened no one cn undo it,we jst pray it doznt get out of control in 9ja,so far it has claimed over 1000 lives its painful thou,bt God is in control

May he soul never rest in peace. Ebola will still visit him again.

May he soul never rest in peace. Ebola will still visit him again. How art thou wicked o liberian governmemt.

There is a common saying, if someone throws banana at you, you sef don't catch it.

Yes, Liberia cleared him to travel...but did they smuggle him past our immigration?...No. Patrick Sawyer only revealed the lack of appropriate measures to prevent the disease coming into our country...courtesy of the government not being proactive. If appropriate measures were put in place beforehand, as Liberia threw the banana (Sawyer), Nigeria would have dodged/rejected it and thrown it back at them.

I was watching the news today....Guinea Liberia and S.Leone are all in the same area, then you see Nigeria far away and coloured as infected. Do you know how many countries are between us? It was just ridiculous seeing the graphical representation.