Editorial: We Must Be and Remain Robust

Remember always, this time around, the government and people must demonstrate the utmost collective efforts to battle the recent outbreak of Ebola Virus in Liberia from tooth to nail because the most needed international partners’ attentions have been gravely tied to the current unfolding dangerous security development plaguing some of their countries, and may not have that much time and attention as was provided us during the first and second attacks of the dreadful menace.

Be as it may, We Must Be And Remain Robust, constantly doing and applying those anti-Ebola measures we are aware of without hesitation of keeping safe; knowing that we’ve passed this way before with our heads raised up high; and so in union strong, we shall overall prevail. The Recent gains in controlling the Ebola Virus in Liberia and neighboring sisterly Republic of Sierra Leone was wildly welcomed and applauded by the world but it appeared that complacency is the major cause for the resurfacing of the deadly virus which up to date confirmed three new cases.

Following the declaration by the Word Health Organization (WHO) to declare Liberia and Sierra Leone Ebola-free nations, complacency has taken the center stage among Liberians and foreign residents, resulting to the recurrence of the virus. Liberia was the hardest-hit country of the three countries in the Mano River Union, but managed to successfully defeat the Ebola Virus although the virus has killed over four thousand innocent persons, reducing thousand persons to orphans while hundreds of homes have been broken down.

Few months back while the nation was celebrating victory over Ebola, our neighbors Sierra Leone and Guinea were reporting more cases with the number of new cases shooting upward, however, Sierra Leone has since been declared Ebola-free. Liberia's recent gains were attributed to much safer burial practices, a vigorous campaign to educate the public on how to avoid infection, diagnostic tests that can quickly identify and isolate infected people, and teams that track down all of their contacts.

Alarmingly, the virus from the onset has been carried from Guinea into Liberia by an unidentified lady whose status remains a mystery. But the country managed to overcome all odds and defeated the virus with costly energies and resources; but the virus for the third time in roll has resurfaced in the country, this time in the district of Paynesville where it has reported that a 10-year-old boy who lived with his parents and three siblings is the latest carrier.

This latest outbreak in Liberia suggests that donor nations need to increase their contributions of money, materials, and teams of doctors and nurses to fight the epidemic while Liberians themselves must do everything possible to remove the complacency factor to save the nation from another human turmoil.

Given the changing shape of the epidemic, the nation needs to join the international community especially the United Nations and WHO to consider a more nimble response that would deploy smaller, more geographically dispersed treatment approaches to defeat Ebola once and for all.

This latest outbreak could lead to a widening epidemic throughout the country and may result in additional deaths unless it is crushed quickly. We want to caution the people of Liberia not to play a blame shifting game as the outbreak resurfaces, instead we must keep up the efforts to fight and defeat the Ebola Virus for the third times. In Union Strong, We Shall Overall Prevail