Moses Emorinken, Abuja
THE Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has debunked claims that it receives money from passengers intending to embark on travels, through the official travel platform – Nigeria International Travel Portal (NITP).
It explained that although it advises that passengers should not make payments outside of the official platform, all payment received on the travel platform are sent directly to the laboratories, where the passengers have chosen to be tested.
The agency stated that to ensure that the public health response is not affected by personal requests and needs, only accredited private laboratories can carry out all travel-related testing.
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The NCDC, in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday, said: “Our attention has been drawn to a report published by the Daily Independent newspaper on the 14th of September 2020, with the title: ‘Fraud Rocks NCDC COVID-19 Tests for Air Travellers’. This report is simply incorrect and based on information that is inconsistent with the truth. In addition, no attempt was made to contact the NCDC on this matter before the newspaper went to press.
“This article is an unfortunate misrepresentation of efforts by government ministries and agencies, to enable safe travel in the context of a pandemic affecting every country in the world.”
