Some Americans on Wednesday
refused to hold hands with Nigerians over the fear of Ebola at an event
held at the United States Consulate in Lagos.
The holding of hands was engineered
by Nigeria’s top human rights activist, Dr. Joe-Okei Odumakin, who asked
everyone in attendance to hold hands and pledge that Africa’s most
populous country will one day overcome its electoral challenges.
However, while Nigerians were
already holding their hands, Americans in the Consulate declined to
follow and told Odumakin that it was not a good idea.
“They are saying that because of Ebola, we should not hold hands,” Odumakin told the audience.
Everyone proceeded to sing “We shall overcome” without holding hands.
The incident underscores the global fear of Ebola.
President Obama on Tuesday said
Ebola was an American national security threat and announced that he
will be deploying 3000 Americans to Africa to help defeat the dreaded
disease that has killed more than 2400 people on the continent.
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| Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin |
The event at the Consulate brought
together Nigerians, especially those in the civil society, with some
Americans to discuss electoral security as Nigeria gets set for the
2015 general elections next year.
Dr. Patrick W. Quirk, a Senior
conflict and stabilisation adviser within the Bureau of Conflict and
Stabilisation Operations (CSO) at the United States Department of State,
pledged that America will work with Nigeria for a free, fair, credible
and violence-free election.
Quirk, an electoral security expert
with more than 10 years of experience who chaired the interactive
session along with Odumakin, said the civil society has a big role to
play in preventing violence before, during and after electoral
processes.
He said Nigeria would need a coordinated election security plan that can be clearly communicated to Nigerians.
To be successful, he said, the coordination must involve the Federal, state and local government levels.
Odumakin warned Nigerians not to
expect much from Americans, even though they are ready and willing to
help. She Nigerians must take their destiny into their hands with a
mentality shift and concrete actions.
She denied that most civil society
organisations in Nigeria are corrupt, partial and there not credible
enough to earn the respect of politicians and other Nigerians.
She said there are still bad eggs but funders can identify the good from the bad ones.
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