Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, says Nigerians seeking repatriation from the United Kingdom are not compelled to undergo coronavirus test with any particular healthcare provider.
Mrs Dabiri-Erewa said this in a message to Qed.ng in reaction to reports that NIDCOM engaged telemedicine company, Mobihealth International Limited, as agent to test intending evacuees for COVID-19.
Cost of the test was put at £350 (approximately 170,900) per person.
The COVID-19 test is a precondition for anybody seeking to get on an evacuation flight to Nigeria.
Because of challenges with the UK public National Health Service (NHS), Nigerians interested in having a private COVID-19 laboratory test were advised to send their details to Mobihealth by email or contact the CEO, Dr Funmi Adewara, by telephone.
Dabiri-Erewa, however, told this online newspaper on Tuesday that there are other options for anyone to undergo the test in the UK.
“That is one of them. And I guess anyone interested can contact them or any other that can be trusted,” the NIDCOM chairman said.
According to her, “a lady just did hers at Chelsea Hospital while another did through NHS.”
The International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) earlier reported that Mobihealth had backed out of the deal to conduct COVID-19 test for Nigerians wishing to return home.
Adewara was quoted as saying “I’m afraid I can no longer continue the collation for the COVID-19 private test. It has proven too stressful and interrupting my work.”
