FACT-CHECK: Did Infectious Disease Expert Prof. Ishaku Akyala Misstate the Ebola Incubation Period on News Central TV?
BY: Chukwuemeka Paschal
Claim:
Infectious disease expert Prof. Ishaku Akyala stated during a News Central TV interview that Ebola’s incubation period is between seven and 14 days.
During a live appearance on News Central TV analysing Nigeria’s public health update regarding the confirmed Ebola case in Abuja, infectious disease expert Prof. Ishaku Akyala stated verbatim: “The incubation period is between 7 to 14 days”.
Verdict: FALSE
Full Text:
In a television interview broadcast and posted on News Central TV on October 20, 2026, following the Federal Government’s public health announcement regarding a confirmed case of Ebola in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), infectious disease expert Prof. Ishaku Akyala appeared as a guest to analyze the ongoing contact tracing and containment protocols. While discussing the outbreak, Prof. Ishaku Akyala stated: “The incubation period is between 7 to 14 days, although… it is an infection that has a high case fatality rate.”
At approximately 5 minutes and 46 seconds into the 8 minute long interview, he stated: “The symptoms called the incubation periods are between 7 to 14 days.” The statement came in response to a question about Ebola’s incubation period, transmission, and early warning signs.
While the health expert critiques regarding administrative time lags or transparency are common during epidemic responses, misstating core epidemiological parameters on national television can create public misunderstanding regarding quarantine windows and symptom monitoring.
Verification:
FactCheckAfrica cross-referenced the medical and scientific statements with records from recognized global and national health authorities, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
According to established epidemiological data from the World Health Organization (WHO) Ebola Factsheet, under the “Symptoms” section, which explicitly states, “The incubation period or interval from infection to onset of symptoms varies from 2 to 21 days”.
Similarly, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Disease Information Portal explicitly confirms that “The average incubation period of the virus is 2 to 21 days.” Therefore, the true incubation period ranges from 2 to 21 days. While symptoms frequently manifest within 8 to 10 days on average, defining or capping the medical incubation period strictly as 7 to 14 days contradicts standard medical facts and misrepresents global health guidelines.
Understanding Ebola: Transmission
Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a severe, often fatal hemorrhagic illness caused by orthoebolaviruses. Understanding its biological characteristics is crucial for public health awareness:
Fruit bats belonging to the Pteropodidae family are considered the primary natural host reservoirs for the virus. Zoonotic spillover to humans occurs when individuals hunt, handle, or consume infected wild animals (bushmeat), or when they consume raw fruits and food products contaminated by infected bat secretions (Source: World Health Organization (WHO) – Ebola Overview & Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Disease Information Portal).
Once a human becomes infected, the virus spreads through human-to-human transmission via direct contact through broken skin or mucous membranes with the blood or bodily fluids including vomit, diarrhea, sweat, semen, and saliva of a sick or deceased person, as well as through contact with contaminated surfaces and medical equipment (Source: World Health Organization (WHO) Ebola Factsheet & Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Disease Information Portal).
Importantly, regarding the infectiousness window, individuals infected with Ebola are not contagious and cannot spread the virus until they begin exhibiting clinical symptoms (Source: World Health Organization (WHO) Ebola Q&A & Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Surveillance Guidelines).
Conclusion:
Prof. Ishaku Akyala’s claim capping the Ebola incubation period at 7 to 14 days is FALSE. Standard public health protocols established by both the NCDC and WHO define the incubation window as 2 to 21 days. Broadening public knowledge of the full 21-day window is critical to ensuring potential contacts remain monitored for the correct duration during health emergencies.
