The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has said the 2027 general election could be postponed if the Ebola outbreak in the country spreads to a level that makes such a decision necessary to protect public health.
Jide Idris, Director-General of the NCDC, stated this during a television programme.
According to him, the severity and geographical spread of the outbreak would determine whether postponing the election should be considered.
Idris, however, stressed that there was currently no reason to contemplate such a move, expressing optimism that the outbreak would be contained without disrupting the electoral timetable.
“We hope the election will not be postponed, but if the thing (Ebola) gets wide enough, that might be considered. As of now, there is no need for that,” he said.
The 2027 general election is expected to begin in January, with political parties and aspirants already making preparations ahead of the polls.
The NCDC chief’s remarks come amid concerns about the potential implications of the Ebola outbreak for public gatherings and other activities that could increase the risk of disease transmission if the situation deteriorates.
He maintained that any decision to postpone the election would be guided by public health considerations rather than political interests.
Addressing suggestions that the government might exploit the outbreak for political purposes, Idris insisted that health officials had no intention of using disease outbreaks as a political instrument.
“We in the health sector will not use disease issues as a political weapon. No government will use Ebola as a political weapon,” he said.
The NCDC director-general explained that Nigeria had been closely monitoring developments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the outbreak originated, and had anticipated the possibility of the virus reaching the country.
According to him, population movements, international air travel and activities at the country’s ports of entry were among the factors that made the possibility of importing the disease a concern for public health authorities.
He said surveillance efforts had been informed by the developments in the DRC, although the possibility of the virus reaching Nigeria could not be completely ruled out.
“This Ebola thing started in DRC a couple of months ago and we were tracking. They said for you to track again there is a possibility that it may get here due to our population movement, flight into this country, and ports of entry, yet it came. No government will use Ebola as a political weapon,” he said.
