Nigeria vaccinates 277,458 eligible persons

By Sola Ogundipe, Chioma Obinna & Gabriel Olawale

Nine days into the  COVID-19 vaccination exercise in Nigeria, the number of persons vaccinated has continued to grow.

An update released by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, on Thursday, showed that a total of 277,458 eligible Nigerians have so far been vaccinated with the first dose, representing 7.1 percent of the proportion vaccinated.

A breakdown of the NPHCDA update contained in an Electronic Management of Immunisation Data System, further revealed that Lagos is leading in the exercise with 72,045 persons vaccinated.

Four other states trailing Lagos are Bauchi, 28,972; Ogun, 25,707; Jigawa, 21,603 and Kaduna 20,339.

Other states that have recorded 5-digit figures in the exercise are Kwara, 14,914; Katsina, 14,239 and the FCT, 10,439.

In the league of 4-digit states are Adamawa, 9,785; Osun, 9,239; Yobe, 7,349; Nasarawa, 7,232; Ondo, 6,545; Kano, 5,569; Edo, 4,468; Imo, 2,848; Rivers, 2,765; Ekiti, 2,231; Plateau, 2,143; Borno, 1,940; Delta, 1,703; Enugu, 1,429 and Cross River,  1,322.

States within the 3-digit category are Bayelsa, 713; Sokoto, 512; Benue, 397; Akwa Ibom, 294; Gombe and Anambra recorded 254 and 251 respectively.

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Sadly, seven states are yet to vaccinate a single person. These include Abia, Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Oyo, Taraba, and Zamfara.

Lagosians shun safety guidelines

With the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in the country, a wide section of Nigerians have become complacent and lowered their guard against the dreaded infectious disease.

No thanks to this lackadaisical attitude to the rampaging viral infection, there are palpable fears that a third wave of the COVID-19 infections may be imminent.

Globally, as of March 24, 2021, the dreaded disease has sickened  125,042,432 persons with 2,749,550  deaths.  In Nigeria, a total of 162,076 cases have been confirmed while 2,031 have died.

Despite the numbing statistics, compliance to the Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions, NPI, is rapidly fading out particularly in public places.

Even as the COVID-19 pandemic is having a heavy toll on Lagos state which is the epicentre in Nigeria, many Lagos residents continually flout the guidelines.

During the relaxed lockdown in 2020, the Lagos state government made wearing face masks compulsory in public in line with the Federal Government’s guidelines. The government also insisted that persons without a face mask in public will be prosecuted. But, to date, millions of the inhabitants of Lagos are going about without a face mask.

The story is the same in the public and private places within the state. From the places of worship to restaurants, bars;  schools, markets, social gatherings, commercial buses, and even in the state-owned BRT buses, the usual practice of wearing face masks or complying with the social distancing rule, has virtually disappeared.

More pathetic is the fact that, even among the few people that bother to put on face masks, many actually wear them as a ‘chin mask’.

Prior to this development, unconfirmed statistics show that 90 per cent of Lagosians do not wear a face mask or adhere to the social distancing rule.

This may not be unconnected with the recent rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in the state.  Critical health watchers are worried that the vaccine rollout may be unexpectedly giving residents a false sense of security or protection.

It will be recalled that the wearing of face masks is among the guidelines issued at the beginning of the containment efforts against the coronavirus,  under the respiratory hygiene recommendations.

However, like the other recommendations in the guidelines, the use of a face mask has been continuously flouted. The danger of the failure of adherence to these safety measures is obvious, according to health watchers.

But the experts say there may be serious implications if nothing is done urgently to forestall a resurgence of the coronavirus infection as the pandemic is not over.

Findings by Good Health Weekly, show that attempts by the state government to prosecute defaulters have not served as a deterrent.

Even though NPHCDA, is making spirited attempts to share knowledge and boost vaccination education and awareness, the complete absence of enforcement of the recommended safety measures is worrisome.

Infectious disease experts say the face mask is one piece of Personal Protective Equipment, PPE that can prevent COVID-19 infection, and stop the spread of the virus, together with social distancing, hand-washing, and save lives.

With over 20,000 Nigerians immunised with the vaccines and more joining the ranks daily, many are still in doubt.

Currently, millions have thrown caution to the winds, shaking hands, hugging, attending parties, and worship places, among others, without feeling any threat by the coronavirus.

A significant number of Lagosians are ignorant of the COVID-19 vaccines, Findings reveal that awareness about the vaccines remains low. Many residents still do not understand the nature of the pandemic.

A full year after the outbreak there is still a strong perception that the vaccine is a mere ploy to further deceive Nigerians.

Joseph Egwu, a trader in Balogun Market, in Lagos, vowed that will never wear a mask and will not stop going to church because he does not believe in the coronavirus or the much-celebrated vaccines.

“I am not interested in face masks because the government is deceiving us. Have you not heard about anti-Christ?   That is how it will start.

“I know there are other vaccines for children.  We were told that the doctors and nurses are taking the vaccines at least if it is true, the doses they have taken will cover us,” he said.

For Grace Amos, the vaccine is a welcome development. Anybody that contracts it will take a vaccine and that ends the problem.  So, wearing of face mask is no longer compulsory.  I will take the vaccine when they come to our area,” she said

Also responding, Bolanle Ojodu said she was not comfortable with the face mask and was waiting to take the vaccine to put to rest the issue of forcing herself to wear a face mask.

“I feel like I am choking each time I wear a face mask.   I know coronavirus is real but I cannot breathe well while wearing a mask. I am waiting to get vaccinated.”

In a report, the Chairman, Medical Guild, Dr. Oluwajimi Sodipo, said masks are supposed to cover the nose and mouth and not the chin.

“We have noticed that a lot of persons do not wear masks in public places.  There are also concerns about physical distancing and the issue of mass gatherings”.

In the views of the  CMAC, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Prof Wasiu Adeyemo, the face mask is one single piece of PPE that can prevent COVID-19, saying this is why people must wear it even when they have received vaccination until the country returns to normalcy.

COVID-19: Makinde, SSG, others  vaccinated in Oyo

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, the Secretary to the State Government, Mrs. Olubamiwo Adeosun, other government functionaries, and frontline health workers, yesterday received the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

Governor Makinde, who was the first to receive the jab, said that he was convinced the vaccine was safe and without side effects for human beings.

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, indicated that the vaccines were administered by the Executive Secretary, Primary Healthcare Board,  Dr. Muideen Olatunji, at the Executive  Council Chamber of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.

The process was witnessed by representatives of the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the Nigeria Dental and Medical Association.

Speaking after receiving the vaccine, Governor Makinde enjoined residents of the state to have confidence in the process and pledged that the state would continue to monitor the process for necessary actions.

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The governor noted that the sterility tests carried out on the COVID-19 vaccine by two laboratories in Ibadan confirmed its safety.

He, therefore, appealed to residents of the state not to doubt the vaccines.

He said: “I did not want to take the vaccine because naturally, I have a very low tolerance for physical pains; but when duty calls, we have to do what we have to do.

“I think we have to show leadership. We have to let the people know that they are protected. When I was reading the newspaper this morning, I saw where they said Oyo State has not given a single shot of the vaccine. So, they recorded zero for Oyo State. But now we have at least one.”

“We have our two labs here, the Virology Lab and the Bio-repository Lab, and they all came with the same results that the vaccine is good and proper for the consumption of the people.”

 of Oyo State; and it didn’t take me 24 hours after that to set and agree to come for this vaccination.

“So, on this note, I want to thank our international partners and also the health family in Oyo State. You have risen to the occasion, you have always been there, doing your work. The COVID-19 was better handled in Oyo State compared to most states in Nigeria.

“I also remember the first meeting even before this vaccination. We were discussing online registration. In Oyo State, we rightly pointed out that there are data that should be available on the online platform. And we said if the people at the national level have designed their own and we feel it wasn’t adequate, we decided to design our own local one and it didn’t take 24 hours before the national (Task Force) copied Oyo State and they upgraded their own.

“So, we will continue to set the pace here in Oyo State and I want to, on this note, let our people know that the process is open, simple. You don’t have to bribe anyone to get vaccinated and we will continue to monitor the process.

“127,000 is nothing when you compare it with the number of people we have to vaccinate in Oyo State. But we will continue getting whatever has been given and where we need to augment and go on our own to buy, we will do it when we get to that point.

“So, have confidence in the process, have confidence in your government, and have confidence in your health family in Oyo State.”

In his remarks, the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Bashir Bello, stated that the vaccines were kept at the required temperature in a bid to ensure that they are safe for human consumption.

Earlier, the Executive Secretary, Primary Health Care Board, Dr. Muideen Olatunji, appreciated Governor Makinde for his tenacity in seeking quality health care service for the citizens of the state.

According to him, “we want to appreciate the governor for his tenacity in seeking quality health care service for the citizens of the state. We are all aware that since 2019, we faced the pandemic of COVID-19 and it ravaged everywhere in the world.

“Luckily, towards the end of last year, we started seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with the vaccine we can take to protect all of us. Let me state clearly, the vaccine is not a drug for curing the disease but meant to protect us against the disease, and the only instrument the vaccine will use is the body itself.

“This is a new vaccine and a new disease. Health workers need to be trained. Every person will get two doses. The first dose is to prime you and the second dose will act as a booster to confer immunity on us.

“We are encouraging every person to do online registration and we are going to do manual data capturing as both are going to be synergized. After the vaccination, we will issue a card that will have a barcode. The barcode will be scanned and we are going to load it to a central server for the entire country.

“So, whether you like it or not, the day you want to leave the country and travel, you will be compelled to vaccinate. We implore people to have trust in the process.”

Vanguard News Nigeria