By Kemo Cham
Sierra Leone’s President, Julius Maada Bio, on Wednesday ordered for the deployment of the military at all its border entry points as the latest measure in efforts to prevent the novel coronavirus from entering the country.
The decision was made public in a nationwide televised address announcing new measures as part of the country’s preparedness against the viral pandemic.
Bio called on Sierra Leoneans to review aspects of their lifestyles that have the potential to encourage the spread of the virus, urging the practice of stricter hygiene measures and social distancing.
Bio also called on citizens to exercise vigilance and to report to the appropriate health authorities any sign and symptoms of the viral infection through the recently reactivated dedicated toll – 117.
The presidential address comes as the country intensified measures to keep the virus at bay, after all its neighbors – Guinea, Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire - have recorded cases.
The military, according to the president, will enhance security and support compliance with all public health directives and advisories.
“It is no longer a question of whether the coronavirus will come to Sierra Leone, it is a question of when,” President Bio said in the statement broadcast on all television and major radio stations across the country.
While ruling out any imminent lockdown, Bio said the actions and the preventive measures been taken as individuals and as communities were critical to ensuring that there was no lockdown.
“We are determined to prevent the incidence and spread of the virus. But we are also extremely cautious that like Ebola, by the time we identify one positive case, we would have had several dozen disease contacts. We cannot afford to wait for a positive case,” he said.
The coronavirus pandemic, which began in China last December, has spread to over 150 countries as of March 17, according to figures from the World Health Organization (WHO).
There were over 179, 000 confirmed cases globally with nearly 7500 deaths, according to the WHO figures.
Some 33 African countries have recorded cases of the virus, around 400 cases - after Gambia became one of the latest countries on the continent to record a case on Tuesday.
The Gambian case was said to be a 20-year old woman who traveled from the UK.
Sierra Leone is the only country in the Mano River Union (MRU) that hasn’t got a case of the viral pandemic. The MRU is a four-nation sub-regional bloc that include Guinea, Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire.
Sierra Leone is completely surrounded by both Guinea and Liberia, with over a 100 porous border crossing points between them.
Wednesday’s presidential address also comes amidst heightening fears over the possible spillover of the virus into Sierra Leone, especially through air travel. Many Sierra Leoneans have been calling for the airport to shut down.
While the government has ruled out a lockdown, it has taken other stringent measures.
The Ministry of Sports has also announced the banning of all sporting activities.
At least two airlines have reportedly cancelled flights to the country in the last one week. And several organizations have put off planned engagements.
The Presidency on Tuesday cancelled a planned public forum on the Coronavirus as a result of measures the government had imposed. That meeting had been designed to serve as a forum to mobilize public support for the efforts.
State House did not provide any detail on the reason for cancelling the meeting. But it came after President Bio met with members of the team that headed the country’s response to the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic.
The President was quoted saying that the “footprint” of the virus was “uncomfortably closer”, calling for stringent action to prevent it from reaching, including the use of the experience fighting Ebola.
Besides banning overseas travel for government officials, the presidency in a statement on Monday prohibited gathering of more than 100 people. It also urged the general public to “refrain, as far as possible, from overseas travel until further notice”.
In his address to the nation, President Bio emphasized the need to respect those measures.
Earlier on Wednesday morning, there were chaotic scenes at the Lungi International Airport where a Kenya Airways flight carrying a suspected case of the Coronavirus landed.
The plane, which reportedly originated from an unnamed European country, had onboard four Japanese passengers, one of whom was said to be displaying signs and symptoms of the viral infection.
A statement from the Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority said it prevented the Japanese from disembarking on the grounds of public health and safety.
The plane, according to officials, was ordered to fly back to an unknown destination with the passengers who were coming to the country for tourism.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Health told Politico that some other non-Sierra Leonean passengers from neighboring countries also opted to return to their point of origin after they refused to undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine.
“The rest of the passengers, all of whom are Sierra Leoneans, have been taken to a quarantine facility and are currently being monitored,” said Harold Thomas, Communication Lead at the Directorate of Health Security, Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS).
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