The Federal Government has labelled the travel restrictions placed on Nigeria by the United Kingdom as unjust and discriminatory.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, condemned the decision to add Nigeria to the red listing during a news conference in Abuja, according to Channels.

Recall that the UK government initiated the ban after the reported discovery of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the UK linked to Nigeria.

Mohammed’s reaction comes after an earlier statement on the UK ban by the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, during an interview on Sunday.

”Let me say straight away that it’s up to the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) to respond to this action by the British government and others, and I have no doubt that the Committee will respond appropriately,” Mohammed said, as quoted by The Nation.

He added, ”However, as the Spokesman for the Federal Government, I can say, without mincing words, that the decision by the British government to put Nigeria on the red list, just because of less than two dozen cases of Omicron which, by the way, did not originate in Nigeria, is unjust, unfair, punitive, indefensible and discriminatory. The decision is also not driven by science.”

Speaking further, the minister urged the British government to repeal the decision with immediate effect.

“We sincerely hope the British government will immediately review the decision to put Nigeria on its red list and rescind it immediately. Nigeria has handled the Covid-19 pandemic with utmost responsibility and based on science, and has rightly earned global accolades for its efforts.

“Nigeria does not belong on any country’s red list.”