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The Lagos state government says inbound travellers who provide fake phone numbers and addresses to avoid the mandatory self-isolation will face severe sanctions.

Akin Abayomi, Lagos commissioner for health, in a statement on Monday, said inbound travellers are likely to import new COVID-19 strains into the state, which may trigger a third wave of infections.

“The trigger for a third wave in Lagos is likely to be the importation of new COVID strains from inbound travelers,” the statement reads.

“As part of these protocols, passengers are to mandatorily isolate for the required seven days and will be strictly monitored through phone calls by our EKOTELEMED platform and physical visits to the passengers’ homes by our surveillance teams.

“Anyone found to have either broken this rule or supplied a fake phone no or address in a bid to escape the laid down protocols will be identified and made to mandatorily isolate at any of our government or PPP isolation centres for 10 days at their cost, in addition to a stipulated fine.”

Abayomi also noted that the state will fully enforce the recent travel protocol of the federal government, noting that those who returned from Brazil, India and Turkey in the last 14 days will be quarantined for a week in a government-approved facility.

On Saturday, the federal government had said foreigners who recently visited Brazil, India and Turkey will be denied entry into Nigeria from Tuesday.

According to the travel advisory, Nigerians who visited the three countries are expected to undergo a one-week mandatory quarantine at arrival, while the passengers will bear the cost.

The federal government has also announced a reduction in the validity period of the pre-boarding COVID-19 PCR test for all Nigeria-bound passengers from 96 to 72 hours.

Abayomi warned residents of the state not to assume that the pandemic is over, and called for strict compliance with the COVID protocol.

“On the authority of the Incident Commander @jidesanwoolu, immediate measures to fully enforce the protocol just announced by the FGN will be adopted for every inbound person which include banning entry to non-Nigerian passengers who have been in Brazil, India or Turkey in the last fortnight due to concerns over the spread of coronavirus in those 3 nations,” he said.

“Nigerians & permanent residents of Nigeria who have been in those countries in the last 14 days will have to undergo mandatory quarantine for a week in a govt approved facility on arrival.”

Lagos, which is the epicentre of the pandemic in the country, has recorded 58,480 COVID-19 infections with about 1,051 current active cases as of May 2.

PRESS STATEMENT ON COVID-19 THIRD WAVE PREVENTION PROTOCOLS by @ProfAkinAbayomi

HIGHLIGHTS
👉🏽Lagos To Enforce Isolation and Testing Guidelines For Travelers

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👉🏽To Closely Monitor Positive Cases to Detect Variants @followlasg @jidesanwoolu @drobafemihamzat @gbenga_omo @Mr_JAGs pic.twitter.com/g9PboZ2Zax

— LSMOH (@LSMOH) May 3, 2021

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We are seeing a significant dip in the number of positive cases & deaths – going by the low occupancy rate in our isolation centers, reduction in the demand for oxygen & the positivity rate that has decreased from around an all-time high 35% in Dec 2020 to 1.5% as at April 2021.

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— LSMOH (@LSMOH) May 3, 2021

International experience is demonstrating that vaccination is one of the strongest tenets of mitigation against successive waves in other countries. This would be done in conjunction with the FGN and following all approvals and validation by NAFDAC and all other relevant bodies.

— LSMOH (@LSMOH) May 3, 2021