08/04/2014 12:42 GMT
by Rod Mac Johnson
FREETOWN, August 4, 2014 (AFP) - Sierra Leone's leader appealed Monday to the Ebola-hit west African country's people to fight together against the deadly epidemic, warning that "the very essence" of the nation was at stake.
President Ernest Bai Koroma urged families to ensure that victims were reported to health authorities and asked every Sierra Leonean to take responsibility to raise awareness of the killer tropical virus.
"This is a collective fight. The very essence of our nation is at stake," he said in a televised address marking a "stay at home day" aimed at recalibrating the state's response to the outbreak.
Sierra Leone has seen 574 cases -- the most of any nation -- and 252 deaths since the virus spread from neighbouring Guinea in May.
"We set up this day because of our conviction that, as a nation, the family is key to our fight against the disease," Koroma said.
"As a government we have scaled down from other work to scale up the fight against the disease. We ask all Sierra Leoneans to scale up his or her effort against Ebola.
"In this fight every individual counts, for if every individual or family, community or town fails to act, the risk is increased for the whole nation."
Koroma declared a state of emergency last week ahead of a regional summit at which Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone agreed to a cross-border isolation zone at the epicentre of the world's worst-ever outbreak.
- Freetown 'a graveyard' -
Streets in the capital Freetown were empty on Monday as people observed "stay at home day", called to give the authorities breathing space to reorganise the battle to halt an epidemic which has seen more than 800 deaths across west Africa since the start of the year.
"Freetown is as quiet as a graveyard," health worker Claudius Williams told AFP.
"As we move around in our sensitisation drive, you could hear a pin drop as people remain inside their houses with doors firmly shut. We have to knock endless times before they open them."
Bars, restaurants, shops and marketplaces were all shut and the few vehicles plying the capital's roads mostly belonged to the ministry of health and the emergency services.
Plain-clothed police questioned the few people walking the streets about their movements before sending them home.
Government offices said they were discouraging visits by members of the public, urging people to telephone with queries instead of showing up in person.
Leaflets explaining the dangers associated with Ebola and how to combat them have been distributed to shoppers while government vehicles have been emblazoned with banners offering safety advice.
People walking around Freetown in recent days have been increasingly wearing brightly-coloured gloves displaying the slogan "Don't touch".
A group of 150 village chieftains issued a statement on Monday calling on tribal meetings and other activities to be put on hold until Ebola had been beaten.
Social Welfare Minister Moijueh Kaikai said however the crisis posed no threat to Sierra Leone's participation in the annual "hajj" pilgrimage, which will see Muslims from across the globe heading to the sacred Saudi Arabian city of Mecca in October.
"All relevant modalities have been put in place by the government for the pilgrims to go," he told reporters.
"The government has signed an agreement with the hajj organisers in Saudi Arabia for 1,000 pilgrims."
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