Nigerians Outrage Over Jim Iyke Fleeing Liberia Over Ebola Virus Outbreak Makes It To UK Daily Mail

You Know your a star when a controversy about you hits UK’s biggest daily newspaper / biggest online news portal.

Yesterday Jim Iyke fled Liberia over reports that there was an outbreak of Ebola virus in the capital city Monrovia where he was doing business. (If you missed it, read it HERE.)

UK Daily Mail published the story, the report when you continue….

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Anger: Nigerian actor Jim Iyke shared this image of himself wearing an Ebola mask while sitting in a luxury airport lounge in Liberia. At least 600 people have already died from the disease in the country

A Nigerian actor has sparked outrage after posting an image of himself wearing an Ebola mask while sitting in a first class airport lounge as he flees Liberia.

‘Nollywood’ star Jim Iyke posted a message on his Instagram page saying he had cut short a business trip to Monrovia in Liberia – where at least 600 people have already died from the disease.

The image of Iyke sitting on green leather-clad seats in the airport’s luxury first class lounge while wearing an expensive designer watch and sunglasses was accompanied with the caption: ‘Not ashamed to admit this scares the Jesus outta me #Ebola.’

The contrast between Iyke’s image of first class luxury is in stark contrast to the thousands of terrified Liberians who are living in fear of contracting the deadly disease.

However, much of the anger about his image stemmed from fear among Nigerian citizens that Iyke appeared to be travelling back to the country without having been tested to see if he was infected.

Twitter user @Avariberry posted a message reading: ‘Jim Iyke or Not… he gotta be screened. #TestJimIyke.’

Meanwhile @IcallDibbz_ said: ‘Please ooo, James Ikechukwu, aka Jim Iyke, should be quarantined.’

Others picked up on the fact Iyke had an expensive face mask to protect himself, but was wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt.

Ebola is transmitted through close contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals, and in many parts of West Africa people are being told to cover as much of their body as possible to ensure the infection doesn’t enter their bloodstream through a small cut.

Iyke has appeared in more than 150 films, including Last Flight to Abuja, and is the founder of the Jim Iyke Foundation for Children with Special Disabilites.

He began acting in 2001 and is one of the highest paid actors in Nollywood – Nigeria’s answer to Hollywood.

Kanyi Okeke

Kanyi is the Founder & Editor-in-Chief of KanyiDaily.com. When she's not serving DAILY delicious scoops on Entertainment and news, you can find her reading a book by the beach. Keep up with Kanyi on Instagram and Twitter or through her email Kanyi@KanyiDaily.com