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Rivers state Government has finally states their position on the arrest of two caverton pilots and ten passengers.
In a released made available to newsmen by one of it commissioner, Paulinus Nsirim, the government criticized the Federal Government for politicising the fight to contain the spread of Covid-19.
The statement further said the case in point is the promotion and sponsorship of a misleading narrative on the arrest of two pilots and 10 passengers of Caverton Helicopters by the Ministry of Aviation.
The statement part read:
“Contrary to the view being peddled by the Minister of Aviation, Alhaji Hadi Sirika, the two pilots of Caverton Helicopters and their 10passengers were not arrested because they operated a permit granted them by the Ministry of Aviation.
“They were arrested because they constantly contravened the Executive Order issued by the Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, which requires that everyone coming into the state for essential duties subject themselves to mandatory health checks to ascertain their coronavirus status.
“Before their arrests, the Rivers State Government issued several warnings to Caverton and other operators to ensure that their pilots and passengers are tested by Rivers State Health Authorities. Caverton Helicopters disregarded the warnings.
“At the last count, Caverton Helicopters ferried over 220 passengers into the State without allowing health professionals of the Rivers State Government ascertain their coronavirus status. They also refused to avail the State Government their contacts, so they can be traced and tested.
“The Rivers State Government under the leadership of His Excellency, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike remains committed to the protection of the over 6million citizens of the state.
“We are not struggling to issue landing permits to airlines, neither are we contending for the control of the air space. Therefore, the issue on ground has nothing to do with the Exclusive List.
“The Focus of the Rivers State Government is to ensure that nobody under the guise of transporting workers on essential services, ferry in persons who will compromise our health system. Therefore, these pilots and passengers must be subjected to health checks before they carry out their responsibilities. That is standard practice.
“The Federal Government as we speak has quarantined Chinese Doctors who are in the country on invitation of the operators of Exclusive List. These Chinese Doctors will be isolated for 14days as a precaution before they mix with Nigerians. If the Federal Government has done that in Abuja for Chinese officials that they invited, why do they insist that persons coming into Rivers State must enter the state without health check?
What are they hiding?
“What is the objective of these persons promoting unhindered access into Rivers State for persons from a coronavirus impacted state?
“From all indications, it is clear that there is a plot to compromise the health of Rivers people. Otherwise, what is the motive for the grandstanding and the sponsorship of false editorials to mislead Nigerians by agents of the Federal Government?…”
