Fight Boko Haram, NLC tells FG

President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC),
Abdulwaheed Omar yesterday challenged the
Federal Government to double its fight
against Boko Haram insurgency in the
manner it has tackled the issue of the deadly
Ebola virus disease (EVD) so far in the
country.
Speaking at a one-day sensitisation on
prevention of EVD in the workplace,
organised by National Union
of Textile,
Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria
(NUTGTWN), Omar commended the Federal
Government’s efforts to stop the spread of
the virus.
“I think if the Federal Government should
fight Boko Haram the way it is fighting Ebola,
then the insurgency would have ended since.
So, I call on the government to be as
proactive to Boko Haram as it has done to
Ebola,” he said.
The NLC president urged the government to
re-direct more of such energy and
resources towards bringing an end to the
Boko Haram insurgency.
Earlier, the General Secretary of NUTGTWN,
Issa Aremu, who is also the vice president of
NLC, said there was need for continuous
enlightenment and sensitisation on the Ebola
virus, explaining that the workshop was to
enlighten members of the labour force about
the disease and how to prevent it.
“As deadly as the Ebola virus disease is, we
should not forget that there are other
diseases like malaria, polio and cholera,
which have cure but are still rampant in the
country. Thus, as we battle with the deadly
Ebola virus disease, we should do more with
other diseases with known treatment/
prevention. It is all about good healthcare
and good governance.
“We commend the recent resolution of the
crisis in the health sector that led to the
calling off of the strike by doctors under
Nigeria Medical Association (NMA). We are
also impressed that the Federal Government
has withdrawn the earlier sack order of the
doctors.
“The truth is that we cannot resolve the
numerous health challenges, particularly the
threat posed by the Ebola virus disease (EVD)
if we continue to have crisis in the health
sector. The doctors must be on duty and also
look at their strategy for welfare
improvement beyond the most predictable
and increasingly unhelpful endless work
stoppages.
“Government itself must provide health
workers with the necessary tools, including
insurance covers, to deal with the latest
menace of Ebola,” he said.
Delivering a paper entitled: Ebola Virus
Disease: What We Need to Know, Dr. Sani
Gwarzo, who is a director, Port Health
Services, Federal Ministry of Health, urged
the leadership of the labour union to put in
place a work plan and response team, to
checkmate the spread of Ebola, particularly
in their immediate environment.