In an unprecedented move, President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday personally defended the decision of the federal government to allow schools re-open on September 22, saying saying there was no longer any case of Ebola Virus disease in the country to warrant extension of the holiday.
President Jonathan who spoke to State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said the disease had been effectively contained in the country and allowing schools to remain closed would be sending a wrong message to the international community about the situation in the country.
President Jonathan’s interactioin with state House Correspondents is a rare encounter between him and official reporters of the presidency.
Speaking further on the need for the NUT to shelve their planned strike, President Jonathan said; “Presently, there is no Ebola case in Nigeria; nobody in Nigeria has the disease now.
“Most of the people who came down with the disease have recovered. Out of the 19, we lost seven and the others have recovered, although there a few people we are still observing.
“I am not saying we may not record Ebola case again. As long as the disease is still in the West Coast – Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the likelihood that a character like the Late Sawyer may come in through one way or the other is there.
“But government is also very mindful of that. Presently our air and sea ports as well as land border posts are properly protected.
“If Sawyer were to arrive the country now, no Nigerian would contact the virus because of the level of preparation.’’
He added that those calling for extension of the holiday were ignorant of the wrong signals it would send to the international community about the Ebola situation in the country.
“If you are a Nigerian today and you travel to some countries, they don’t even want you to enter the countries.
“Our athletes were segregated in China, they had to return back. In China they are even asking ministers of the Federal Republic to show proof of being free of the disease, and this is quite discouraging.
“What people don’t know is that as long as you close your institutions because of Ebola, the ambassadors from various countries that are here with us and the high commissioners send dispatches weekly or monthly to their home countries about what is happening in Nigeria.
“As long as we Nigerians close our public institutions because of Ebola, the dispatches that go out to the rest of the world is that Ebola is a problem in Nigeria.
“As long as we declare Ebola a problem in Nigeria, any Nigerian that travels out will be treated as somebody with Ebola.
“We’ve been able to manage the disease and the whole world is happy with us, and we must tell the world that we have managed Ebola and no Nigerian should be segregated because of Ebola.
“If NUT wants Nigeria to close schools until December, then invariably they are saying that until December Nigerians should be discriminated against.’’
Jonathan described the NUT’s threat as unnecessary and uncalled.
He gave credit to all Nigerians for their cooperation and support to government in the effective management of the situation.
He commended the governors of Lagos and Rivers Rivers state where cases of the disease were recorded for their cooperation with the federal government
in containing the virus.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/09/jonathan-says-nuts-threat-unnecessary-uncalled-for/

I so much love this speech of his. Make sense. GEJ till 2019 jare