Decontee Sawyer, the widow of late Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian who brought Ebola into Nigeria, has defended her husband’s decision to travel to Nigeria, even though he knew he may have Ebola.
She insists his decision was not a reckless one [The Liberian President declared Patrick's act reckless, while Nigerian President Jonathan called him a 'crazy man'] but an indictment on the healthcare system in Liberia.
She thinks her husband had no trust in getting good diagnosis and treatment from the doctors and nurses in his country, and had possibly headed to Nigeria with the hope of receiving better treatment. If you ask me, I think he was hoping he would make it to America. Unfortunately, Ebola doesn't work that way, and now we have three people dead from his actions, and scores sick.
Decontee shared her thoughts on her Facebook page:
Good day my Facebook friends and FAM. I hope all is well with you. Thank you for all of your kind words and support for me and my family. You strengthen me more than you realize.According to an article written on Ava's birthday (August 10) by Sabrina Tavernise of the New York Times, "...in another Liberian newspaper, The New Dawn, which cited footage from a security camera in the airport in Monrovia, Mr. Sawyer behaved strangely as he waited for his flight out of Liberia. He sat alone, avoiding physical contact with people, including an immigration agent who tried to shake his hand, and even lay flat on his stomach on the floor of a corridor of the airport, the paper reported."
“I’ve read other reports in other papers (not the New York Times) about Patrick’s “recklessness.” I get where they’re coming from, and they certainly have the right to feel the way they do. However, as Patrick’s widow, I would like to shed some light on this from another perspective. One that only I, his wife, would know,”“I knew Patrick better than anybody else (including himself). He had told me many times in the past how much he didn’t trust the Liberian healthcare system. He would tell me about how a person would get checked in for one thing, and get misdiagnosed and get the wrong treatment as a result. On top of that, Patrick was a clean freak, and told me how filthy a lot of the hospitals were.
“He didn’t tell me this, but I know in my heart of hearts that Patrick was determined to get to Nigeria by all means because he felt that Nigeria would be a place of refuge. He has expressed to me many times in the past that he felt passionately about helping to be a part of strengthening Liberia’s healthcare system, but he knew it wasn’t there yet, and he wouldn’t want to take a chance with his life because a lot of people depended on him… Patrick had a passion for life, and he wouldn’t have wanted his to end. So, I bet anything that he was thinking, if I could only get to Nigeria, a way more developed country than Liberia, I would be able to get some help. How ironic.”
“It has been reported that Patrick avoided physical contact with everyone he came across during his trip from Liberia to Nigeria. When he got to Nigeria, he turned himself in letting them know that he had just flown in from Liberia.
“Patrick went to Nigeria for help so that he can get properly diagnosed, and not misdiagnosed in Liberia. And if it came back that he did have Ebola, he trusted the Nigerian healthcare system a lot more than he trusted the Liberian’s. His action, as off as it was, was a desperate plea for help. Patrick didn’t want to die, and he thought his life would be saved in Nigeria.”
“I write today, not simply because of Patrick, but because of the broken healthcare system in the Liberia, and the government’s inability under President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (and other past Presidents) to fix it. Good doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers aren’t given the support they need to save lives.
“President Sirleaf went on CNN News throwing stones at Patrick, a man who can no longer defend himself, a man who worked tirelessly for Liberia. She should be ashamed of herself. I use to admire this woman, and was excited and proud of her accomplishment as the first woman President in the entire continent of Africa. She will always own that. We will always own that. It can’t be taken away from her. It’s something to be proud of. But this woman has failed her country,”
The human will to survive notwithstanding, her husband was an educated man who should have known better. Nigeria has its own healthcare challenges as Liberia. Her husband may or may not have been malicious in his actions, but Sirleaf was right when she said his behavior was reckless. No doubt the disease might have eventually spread anyway, but her husband facilitated that process and has now cost others their lives. I think she needs to just be quiet at this point.
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