Presented by:

Chinweizu Chinweizu

To:

His Excellency President Yayi Boni (Benin)

His Excellency President Michel Kafando (Burkina Faso)

His Excellency President Jorge Carlos Fonseca (Cape Verde)

His Excellency President Alassane Outtara (Cote D’Ivoire)

His Excellency President Yahya Jammeh (Gambia)

His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama (Ghana)

His Excellency President Alpha Conde (Guinea)

His Excellency President Jose Mario Vaz (Guinea-Bissau)

Her Excellency President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberia)

His Excellency President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (Mali)

His Excellency President Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger)

His Excellency President Goodluck Jonathan (Nigeria)

His Excellency President Macky Sall (Senegal)

His Excellency President Ernest Bai Koroma (Sierra Leone)

His Excellency President Faure Gnassingbe (Togo)

We, the undersigned, being committed to the welfare, well-being and health of the people of West Africa, Africa and the world in general, and being concerned by the currently raging and unabated ebola epidemic in West Africa, do hereby:

AFFIRM:

The recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable right of every human being to healthy living.

The right of every West African and African in general, to know the causes of ebola, as a foundation upon which the cure may be identified.

That, in the event that the ebola virus is man-made, the creators, propagators and disseminators of the ebola virus be held responsible for developing the cure.

That, in the event that the ebola virus is man-made, the creators, propagators and disseminators of the ebola virus be held responsible for compensating all the individuals and communities that have been negatively impacted upon by the spread of the virus.

Our faith in the fundamental human rights of every African man and woman.

WE DECLARE THAT:

An emergency ECOWAS Summit on Ebola be set up, forthwith.

A public and independent Commission of Enquiry comprising eminent international judges, jurists and doctors be established to investigate the issues surrounding ebola and address, inter alia, the following:

Is the Ebola virus natural or artificial, i.e. lab-made? Logically, it is either natural or artificial.

If Ebola is a lab-made virus, who manufactured it?

Is there any patent on the Ebola virus? If so, who owns the patent?

Who brought the virus to the Mano River Union Countries (Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea) and in sufficient quantities to infect so many as to have killed some 3000 innocent people in the ten months since the death reported in December 2013?

Have any labs in the Mano River Union Countries been working on Ebola?

If yes to 2.5 above

Who set them up?

Who operates them?

Who supervises them?

Whom are they accountable to?

Where precisely are they located?

Are their laboratory reports available?

How did the virus get from the laboratories to the village where the boy, whose case was reported in December 2013 lived?

Was the “escape” of the virus to that village accidental or intentional?

In light of the fact that there seems to be some cover-up on the real issues surrounding the ebola virus, we categorically and unequivocally assert that the setting up of the envisaged Commission of Enquiry is long overdue and tantamount to disgraceful negligence and insensitivity on the part of ECOWAS leaders.

The setting up of the Commission of Enquiry is paramount to the protection and advancement of the cause of the people of West Africa, Africa and the world in general.

WE THUS PETITION:

His Excellency President Kadre Desire Ouedraogo (ECOWAS Commission)

His Excellency President Yayi Boni (Benin)

His Excellency President Michel Kafando (Burkina Faso)

His Excellency President Jorge Carlos Fonseca (Cape Verde)

His Excellency President Alassane Outtara (Cote D’Ivoire)

His Excellency President Yahya Jammeh (Gambia)

His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama (Ghana)

His Excellency President Alpha Conde (Guinea)

His Excellency President Jose Mario Vaz (Guinea-Bissau)

Her Excellency President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberia)

His Excellency President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (Mali)

His Excellency President Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger)

His Excellency President Goodluck Jonathan (Nigeria)

His Excellency President Macky Sall (Senegal)

His Excellency President Ernest Bai Koroma (Sierra Leone)

His Excellency President Faure Gnassingbe (Togo)

TO:

Ensure that, in the interests advancing, promoting and protecting the fundamental international human rights of the people of West Africa, Africa and the world in general, the said Commission of Enquiry be set up forthwith.

Unconditionally channel the necessary time, resources and personnel to the creation of the said Commission of Enquiry.

Ensure, in earnest, the initiation of all processes necessary to facilitate an biased, impartial, truly representative, independent and democratic ECOWAS Summit on Ebola.

Fully commit to ensuring the success of the Summit and the creation of the Commission of Enquiry.

Fully commit to abide by and respect the findings and outcomes of the Commission of Enquiry.

Publicly disseminate the findings and resolutions of the Commission of Enquiry.

Fully commit to the implementation of the resolutions of the Commission of Enquiry, more-especially those aspects related to recourse for the victims of ebola (individuals and communities), in the event that it is established that there is a human hand behind the creation and/or propagation and/or dissemination of the ebola virus in West Africa or anywhere else for that matter.

Signed:

Health for all