Nigerians will watch live as President Muhammadu Buhari and his vice, Yemi Osinbajo take COVID-19 vaccine to allay the fears of those expressing doubt. 

This was announced by the Federal Government. The statement also added that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha and other prominent Nigerians will be among the first set of Nigerians to receive the COVID-19 vaccine on live television. 

The Executive Director/CEO, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib, said this on Thursday in Abuja at the joint national briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19. According to him, “this is to help drive awareness on the virus and the vaccine administration in the country when it finally arrived.

He urged Nigerians not to be hesitant on the vaccines when they arrive as key government officials like president, VP and the SGF will take it on live TV.“So, we have to make provisions for them.“Even in developed countries, what we have seen is that apart from the prioritisation of health workers, you have to also identify with critical leaders that you don’t want to be wiped off by the virus.

For example, in warfare, if you want to destroy your enemies, you look for specific leaders, captains, the generals; once you decapitate them, then the soldiers will become weak.“So, as much as possible, you do not want to also leave your leaders vulnerable to COVID-19, it doesn’t mean you want to prioritise politicians, that is not correct,” he said.

 The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria intends to get 42 million COVID-19 vaccines to cover one fifth of its population through the global COVAX scheme. 

The initial vaccines would come as part of Nigeria’s plan to inoculate 40 per cent of the population in 2021 and another 30 per cent in 2022, with 100,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine arriving by the end of January 2021.