LACK OF TRUST IN POLITICAL LEADERS HAMPER COVID-19 VACCINATION IN NIGERIA — CAN, NUJ, PSN

REPORTER: CHINAZO ILECHUKWU

Lack of trust on the political class has been identified as a major setback to the fight against the spread of corona virus in Nigeria.

This was the opinion of some participants in an Alliance Building meeting on COVID-19 vaccine between forty selected Associations and National Orientation Agency with Support from UNICEF in Owerri.

In their submissions, the Imo State Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Dr. Stanley Emegwara; the State Chairman Nigeria Union of Journalists, Mr. Chris Akaraonye; and the representative of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Imo State, Venerable Chris Elelia expressed regret that many people still did not believe there was COVID-19 because of lack of confidence in the government.

They were unanimous in calling on leaders to strive to be sincere at all times to win the trust of the governed to avoid misinterpreting policies and gestures geared towards improving the well being of the masses.

The President, All Nigeria Confederation of Principal of Secondary Schools (ANCOPS), Mr. Ferdinand Duru, however appealed to members of the association to support the fight against COVID-19 by championing the campaign for people above eighteen years to take the COVID-19 vaccine to reduce the burden of the disease.

The Imo State Director, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mrs. Ngozi Ekeoba, said the meeting was to interact with opinion leaders to further dispel rumours surrounding the virus and increase the number of people that get vaccinated against the virus.

She described the vaccine as safe and called on participants to educate their followers on the reality of the virus and ways of checking the spread of the disease.

The UNICEF Resource person, Mr. Vitus Ekeocha, stressed the need for persons, especially those living in the rural areas to get vaccinated ahead of Christmas holiday to protect them from those who might come home with the virus.

He noted that the delta variant of the virus, which is currently in Nigeria, might be responsible for the high death rates recorded in some parts of the state and appealed to the people to take all preventive measures.

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