TheHILL | INTERNATIONAL | DECEMBER 15.
The United Kingdom on Wednesday removed from its travel red list the 11 African countries, including Nigeria, put there as a result of the Omicron virus of COVID-19.
The government had yesterday, dropped hint of removing the names of Nigeria and others from the list, after the federal government threatened to also put on its travel red list such countries as UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Argentina, which had taken a similar action against Nigeria, if they failed to remove Nigeria from the list.
The names of the African countries, including Nigeria, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Angola, Mozambique, Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia, Eswatini, and Zimbabwe, were removed from the list as early as 4am this morning.
This came as the United Arab Emirates, UAE, yesterday conceded six slots to Air Peace, both at the Dubai and Sharjah airports, barely twenty-four hours after Emirates Airline asked foreign airlines not to airlift Nigerians to UAE.
Speaking at the UK parliament yesterday, Sajid Javid, UK Health Secretary, said the Omicron variant “has spread so widely across the world,” adding that the travel red list was now “less effective”.
“Now that there is community transmission of Omicron in the UK and Omicron has spread so widely across the world, the travel red list is now less effective in slowing the incursion of Omicron from abroad.
“Whilst we will maintain our temporary testing measures for international travel, we will be removing all 11 countries from the travel red list, effective from 4 am tomorrow (today),” he told Parliament.
The UK government had added Nigeria to the list due to the discovery of COVID Omicron cases in the country
At present, British citizens and residents travelling from Nigeria to the UK are expected to spend £2,285 on hotel quarantine for ten days to slow the spread of the Omicron variant.
They are also required to take either a PCR or a rapid lateral flow test a maximum of 48 hours before departure.
Grant Shapps, UK Transport Secretary, said testing measures would be reviewed in the first week of January.
“As always, we keep all our travel measures under review, and we may impose new restrictions should there be a need to do so to protect public health,” he wrote in a Twitter post.
British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, in a statement in Lagos yesterday, said passengers arriving from the 11 African countries would not have to stay in a managed quarantine hotel on arrival in England from today.
‘’All vaccinated passengers arriving in the UK must continue to take a pre-departure test two days or less before they depart for the UK and must take a PCR test on or before day 2 and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.
‘’These testing measures are vital in helping to prevent any additional cases of Omicron from entering the UK and stopping people from passing it on to others,’’ the high commissioner stated.
Reacting to the removal of Nigeria from the Uk red ist yesterday, the federal government , welcomed the development.
The Director of Public Affairs, Federal Ministry of Aviation, Dr James Odaudu, who reacted on behalf of the government, however, said the ministry was yet to receive any official communication from Britain on the development.
He said: “ The news of the withdrawal of Nigeria from the red list is a welcome development. It is a relief to the aviation industry. However, we are yet to receive any official communication from Britain on the new development.”.
Also reacting, a medical Laboratory Scientist and Public Health Analyst, Dr Casmir Ifeanyi, said the decision was a welcome development and an indication that the world was a global village.
“Following the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 and other stakeholders’ engagement with Nigeria government and that of British government, I expect reversal of that decision by UK.
‘’The UK’s decision in the first place was very wrong because that is not the best way to deal with such a situation. I think they are taking it out on Nigeria, forgetting that Nigeria is a country they have a lot of interest in.
“It will be very difficult for UK to divorce Nigeria, even though we have our good, bad and ugly sides. We have a pact with UK and for them to single out Nigeria for victimization and punishment for disease that the root is not from Nigeria is misplaced.
“That wrong diplomatic decision by their authority is out of place. Do you know the volume of investment they must have lost? Many Nigerians must have booked their flight for Christmas and New Year holidays, among other engagements, in favour of United Kingdom.
“It would have been a major economic loss to the UK and am sure that is one of the reasons they reversed the decision.’’
UK decision is based on data —Tomori
In his reaction, Chairman of Bio-vaccine Board, and a board member of the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation, GAVI, Prof. Oyewale Tomori, said the first decision of the United Kingdom to ban Nigeria was their right, adding that the decided to remove Nigeria from red list was still within their right.
“United Kingdom has right to include Nigeria on red list in the first place and now that they decided to remove Nigeria is still within their right. The High Commissioner said before they included Nigeria on the list, they looked at the data. Now they look at the data again and decided to remove Nigeria from the list.
“I think what Nigeria need to learn from the whole situation is the use of data in taking decision. The British people said their Health Council looked at the data and from what they saw, they took precautionary measure which was to place Nigeria on red list.
“Our decision making as a country should not be based on sentiment or emotion but on available data. At the time they banned Nigeria, they said 21 of the cases of Omicron came from Nigeria and decided to take precautionary measure and after studied it, they decided to remove Nigeria. I don’t think their decision was as a result of Nigeria’s action,’’ Tomori said.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates, UAE, shifted ground in its diplomatic relations’ dispute with Nigeria yesterday, as it finally conceded six slots to Air Peace at Dubai and Sharjah airports.
