Omicron: FG fights back, bans airlines from UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Argentina
…Local market remains unaffected —Experts
By Moses Adeniyi & Matthew Alao
As rolls of actions continue to trail the restrictions of international travels over the Omicron variant of COVID-19, the Federal Government has announced its resolve to take reactionary action to restrict airlines from the United Kingdom, Canada, Argentina, and Saudi Arabia.
The restriction, the Federal Government noted, was in reciprocity to the ban placed on Nigeria as Countries on the red list of the nations in question.
The Federal Government’s restriction, Nigerian NewsDirect gathered would take effect from Tuesday, December 14, 2021 (tomorrow).
Minister of Aviation, Capt. Hadi Sirika, who disclosed the Government’s position on Sunday in Lagos, explained that the decision was a reciprocal action to restrict flights from Nigeria into those Countries over the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron.
Sirika said President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration would also place the United Kingdom, Canada and Saudi Arabia on a red list over the outbreak and spread of the Omicron variant.
The Minister noted that if those Countries placed Nigeria on a red list, they lacked a moral right to have their airlines fly into Nigeria on commercial operations.
According to him, airlines of the affected Countries remained banned and the Countries in question are to be placed on Nigeria’s red list.
“There is also the case of Saudi Arabia that put Nigeria on the ban list. On Sunday, I participated in a meeting with the COVID-19 task force.
“We have given our input that it is not acceptable by us and we recommended that those (Countries) Canada, the UK, Saudi Arabia and Argentina also be put on the red list.
“As they did to us, if they do not allow our citizens into their countries; who are they coming, as airlines, to pick from our Country?
“They are not supposed to come in. I am very sure in the next three days; Monday or Tuesday, all those Countries will be put on the red list of COVID-19,’’ the Minister said.
Sirika who apologised to Nigerians intending to travel to those Countries, said the Federal government’s decision was in the interest of the Country.
In his reaction, the Former Managing Director, Aero Contractor, Captain Ado Sanusi said the decision would not affect the local Aviation industry but necessary considerations must be given to affected international airlines.
“Considering this kind of decision that is taken, whether it is good for the citizen, it would still be for the betterment of the Country.
“So, I don’t think there is any reaction that would affect the local aviation industry because the market is our market. Now for international travel, we should ask the airline that are going to be affected, probably the people that will give the impact of that decision,” he said.
It would be recalled that the Government of the United Kingdom had in a decision that took effect last Monday (06 December, 2021) announced its restriction order to ban air travels from Nigeria from entering its territory.
The United Kingdom had added Nigeria among Countries on its red list as a result of the discovery of COVID Omicron cases in England linked to recent travellers from Nigeria.
The addition of Nigeria came following UK’s decision placing a temporary ban on air travel from six southern African countries: South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe — with immediate effect to prevent importation of the variant into Britain.
According to the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, in a statement made available to News Men, the UK government arrived at the decision to take precautionary measures to protect people in both Countries.
“This new precautionary measure means that a temporary travel ban will be introduced for all non-UK and non-Irish citizens and residents who have been in Nigeria in the last 10 days, meaning they will be refused entry into the UK,” the statement read.
“This does not apply to those who have stayed airside and only transited through Nigeria while changing flights.
“Travellers from Nigeria are still able to transit English airports, provided they have the necessary transit visa,” the Statement had added.
“Over the recent days, we have learned of a significant number of growing cases linked to travel with Nigeria. There are 27 cases already in England and that’s growing. Nigeria narrows second only to South Africa in terms of cases linked to Omicron.
“So today, the government has decided to add Nigeria to the travel red list and that will be effective from 4am on Monday. This will mean that only UK residents or citizens of the UK can enter the UK from Nigeria from that point onwards, and they would have to quarantine in one of the relevant hotels.
“We’ve also decided to require pre-departure tests for all inward travellers that will be effective from 4 am on Tuesday, and they’ll be required a maximum of 48 hours before the departure time,” the Government had said.
Last Wednesday, 08 December, the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) in Saudi Arabia had reportedly confirmed flight suspension from Nigeria in a circular to all airlines operating in the Kingdom.
This was just as it was reportedly disclosed that Saudi Arabia following her suspension of flights from Nigeria till further notice, was in preparations of repatriating Nigerians in the Kingdom over the Omicron virus.
As the tension rise, it has been disclosed that the national travel advisory has been revised by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 and now requires all inbound travellers to Nigeria to present a negative COVID-19 test result done not more than 48hrs before departure.
Fears over the new fast-spreading SARS-CoV-2 variant christened Omicron by the World Health Organisation (WHO) have continued to force travel restrictions as Countries stick to placing affected nations in Africa on their red,.list, just as Scientists have delved into inquiring into the potency of existing vaccines against the variant.
Scientists in South Africa on November 24, 2021, had reported the Omicron variant with a higher number of mutations than were found in other variants.
Last week, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) had on Tuesday confirmed additional three cases of the B.1.1.529 SARS-CoV-2 in Nigeria which brought the total number of confirmed cases of the Omicron variant detected in Nigeria to six.
The Director General of the NCDC, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, had in a press statement said the Centre through the National Reference Laboratory (NRL) continues to coordinate genomic surveillance activities across the Country to sequence all positive COVID-19 samples from international travellers arriving in Nigeria.
This, according to him, includes sequencing of positive samples from international travellers from October 2021 to date.
“The Delta variant remains the dominant
variant and so far, we have not seen the replacement of this variant by the new Omicron variant as observed elsewhere,” he had said.
He had mentioned that the Omicron variant is a source of global concern because of its increased risk of transmissibility and its potential to escape protective immune responses induced by natural infection and/or vaccination.
He had observed that: “Taken together, and if true, the Omicron variant can significantly change the current global COVID-19 epidemiology. There is currently no evidence of generalised or community transmission of this variant in Nigeria.”
