Why Ekiti suspended security officer after filming father who denied his Lagos returnee son entry into his home
Ekiti State Government said it has suspended a security operatives who filmed the encounter between a man Femi Adeoye and his Lagos returnee son whom he denied entry into his home over fears of contracting COVID-19.
In a viral video presently making the rounds on social media, Adeoye, a retired Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Officer, was seen telling his son who had just returned from Lagos that he would not be allowed into the house except he submits himself for quarantine for 14 days according to the protocol of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) for preventing community spread of the virus.
During the encounter, the father had told his son that he doesn’t want to be part of those that will contribute to the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in Ekiti state like a 29-year-old pregnant community health worker who died from Coronavirus after sneaking into Ekiti from Lagos state where she worked.
In a statement on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information, Muyiwa Olumilua, the government clarified that the video was recorded about four days ago by one of the security men attached to the Fajuyi Pavilion, in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital where the Enforcement Taskforce uses as its base for coordination of daily operations.
Olumilua said the young man has been in the custody of the State for the past four days, and has since been taken to one of the designated quarantine centres, where he would be for 14 days.
“His samples will also be taken for testing in order to ensure he has not been infected in the course of his travels to high incidence areas of the country,” the information commissioner added.
“The security man who recorded the encounter is neither a health worker, nor qualified or authorized to determine the health status of the young man. So, none of his actions or misstatements reflect the capacity or preparedness of the State Taskforce to combat the COVID-19 virus. The officer in question has been suspended pending further investigations, for acting outside the jurisdiction of his scope of authority.”
The state commended Adeoye, for refusing to cover-up his son’s travel history and for denying him access into the house without confirming his COVID-19 status.
“Mr. Adeoye epitomizes the Ekiti ethos of selflessness, which places greater premium on the collective good of the society above personal and emotional considerations. This is the core of the Values Orientation policy of the Fayemi-led Administration,” the statement read.
