Do not panic over ebola - Minister of Health Ali Pate tells Nigerians

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Ali Pate, has urged Nigerians to remain vigilant, avoid panic and rely on verified information following the confirmation of an Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory.

Speaking on Wednesday after meeting with the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, in Abuja, Pate warned against circulating misinformation and unsubstantiated rumours.

He said the Federal Government was working with Uganda and implementing measures to contain the imported case. “What is important is that we have found this one case. We are doing contact tracing, and we are putting containment measures to ensure that it doesn’t go into our population,” he said. Pate urged citizens to take the situation seriously while communicating responsibly.

“Nigerians should be reassured. We must be vigilant, but not panic, and people should respect public health information from trusted sources, and not spread misinformation and false rumours,” he said. The minister said Nigeria had the public health institutions and expertise required to respond.

According to him, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention had activated its incident management system, with response teams working around the clock and a task force coordinating containment efforts. “They are working 24/7, and the task force is also active. So, we have things in place that give us confidence that Nigeria can weather this public health crisis,” he said.

Pate added that authorities would continue monitoring the situation and provide updates as verified information became available. The meeting followed Tuesday’s announcement of a laboratory-confirmed Ebola case involving a woman who had recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda.

Pate said the patient had received treatment for several days at a private hospital in the FCT before the diagnosis was confirmed. Authorities identified 44 close contacts for tracing as part of efforts to prevent further transmission. The minister said containing the case and preventing its spread remained the immediate priorities.