VERIFY EFFICACY OF COVID-19 VACCINE BEFORE ADMINISTERING IT TO NIGERIANS — IWUANYANWU TELLS FG

Reporter : CHINAZO ILECHUKWU

An elder statesman, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, has expressed worry over nonchalant attitude of many Nigerians towards preventing the spread of COVID-19 despite efforts by the federal and state government to sensitize the populace.

Addressing a news conference in Owerri, Chief Iwuanyanwu expressed the fear that the pandemic might overwhelm Nigerians if citizens continued to disregard the protective measures recommended by authorities.

The elder statesman, who is the Chairman of a nongovernmental organization fighting the pandemic, “Iwuanyanwu Nationale Ambulance,” stressed the need for schools to comply with COVID-19 preventive protocol before reopening to check community spread of the virus.

Chief Iwuanyanwu appealed to the Federal Government to verify the efficacy of the awaited COVID-19 vaccine before administering it to Nigerians, noting that the mutating nature of the virus had raised questions on whether the vaccine would provide immunity to people across countries.

According to him, his organization is partnering experts both in Nigeria and in the diaspora to develop vaccine that would meet the health needs of Nigerians.

Chief Iwuanyanwu called on Nigerians to redouble their efforts in food production, pointing out that time had come for government to deploy agriculture extension workers to provide support to farmers to avert hunger occasioned by the pandemic.

Chief Iwuanyanwu, who observed that the world would have to grapple with the virus for some time, cautioned against contemplating imposing another phase of lockdown by the government as such measure would further worsen the economy of the nation.