Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to halt flights to and from the United Kingdom over the resurgence of COVID-19 cases in the country.
Atiku stated this in a Twitter thread on Sunday night, warning that Nigeria might be hit hard again if nothing is done to curtail the spread of the disease.
He said: “The reason Nigeria took a harder than necessary hit during the first wave of the #COVID19 virus is that the Federal Government failed to heed the warnings of well-meaning Nigerians, like myself and others, to shut down our borders once the virus became a pandemic.
“Hindsight is 20/20. Nevertheless, we must learn from history, or we stand the risk of repeating it.
“The new strain of COVID19 that has erupted in the United Kingdom, and specifically, London, can add to Nigeria’s health emergency if we do not act with an abundance of caution and temporarily halt all flights to and from the UK until this new strain is brought under control.
“Already, prudent nations are taking prompt action, and Nigeria must take necessary precautions due to the volume of air traffic between Nigerian airports and London, where this new strain has erupted.”
Atiku said Nigeria must face the reality that its health sector is not equipped to handle another surge of the pandemic.
“We have already lost lives needlessly. We need not lose more,” he added.
The UK on Sunday recorded its highest ever daily rise in coronavirus infections, with 35,928 new COVID-19 cases. London has already been placed on lockdown.
Meanwhile, Nigeria is not expecting COVID-19 vaccine until at least January 2021.