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FG Declares COVID-19 Vaccine Safe As Top Officials Take Jabs
Nigeria commenced vaccination with the Oxford vaccines last Friday with Cyprian Ngong, a medical doctor becoming the first person to receive a jab in Nigeria. The rollout started with healthcare workers who are often at the risk of exposure to infections being the first responders to patients.
Chairman, Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, said Monday at a media briefing in Abuja said that he was leading all members of the PTF to receive the first doses of the vaccine as a further demonstration of the safety and efficacy.
“Let me underscore at this point that in this war, we are all involved in this because nobody is safe until everybody is safe. Our ultimate objective is to vaccinate about 70 per cent of our population which is about 200 million, between year 2021 and 2022,” he said.
Reacting to apathy and hesitancy over COVID-19 vaccines, Mustapha said: “Nigerians should never allow vaccine hesitancy propagated through conspiracy theories sway you from the path of doing the right thing. Taking the vaccines will protect you, your loved ones and the entire community. I similarly wish to warn against patronizing unauthorized vaccines peddlers. The only recognised safe and efficacious vaccines are those coming through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA). We should remain vigilant.”
Mustapha, Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire and his Information and Culture counterpart, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, among other members of the task force yesterday received their first dose of Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine.
Others were the Minister of Environment, Muhammad Mahmood; Minister of State for Health, Olorunnimbe Mamora; Director-General of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Chikwe Ihekweazu; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeoma, and the National Incident Manager, PTF, Mukhtar Muhammad, among others.
Also, four journalists who are considered part of the critical front-liners in the fight against the virus received the vaccine in a representative manner. They were Friday Okoregbe, Channels Television; Hassan Umar Faruk, Liberty Television; Nancy Oyediya Urum, Africa Independent Television (AIT); and Rahila Lassa, Voice of Nigeria (VON).
The vaccines were administered by Obuba Horsefall, the supervising nurse, Adaga Lucy and Obodia Ogonna, after which each of them was issued a vaccination card showing they have received the first dose of the vaccine and when they will receive the second dose.
This is coming after President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Prof Ibrahim Gambari yesterday received the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. The public vaccination, officials say, is to reassure Nigerians and douse skepticisms about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines.
Gambari was given the jab after e-registration and filling of their vaccination card. He sat for 15 minutes as prescribed by the vaccination routine. The Chief of Staff was thereafter presented with vaccination card by the Chief Medical Director of the State House Medical Centre, Dr Husain Munir.
In his remarks, Gambari said the vaccination was painless and that he followed the footsteps of President Buhari, who demonstrated leadership alongside his deputy to receive the jabs on Saturday. He advised eligible Nigerians to take the vaccines, assuring that it is safe.
The government had on Saturday hinted that getting COVID-19 vaccination could become a requirement for all international passengers as the fight against the killer infection continues to gain steam.
Meanwhile, the Presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 has made adequate provisions to deploy the vaccines to all states and vaccination sites where people will be vaccinated according to set priorities beginning with the frontline health workers and other support staff.
The state launch of the vaccination for frontline health workers will begin today at the state treatment centres while many governors have agreed to flag off vaccination tomorrow, Wednesday, just as the roll out for the general public will commence from March 12, barring any change.
Executive Director of the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib, said government is working with CACOVID to ensure that the vaccines are airlifted to the states in time for the roll out.
He noted that it is expected that the states will roll out vaccination only when local governments have met the minimum criteria for successful conduct of the campaign, such as training, cold chain status, proposition of data tools, availability of transport logistics for healthcare workers, and adequate security for vaccines.
The Federal Office for Safety in Health Care (BASG) said a 49-year-old woman died as a result of severe coagulation disorders. It also confirmed another 35-year-old woman developed a pulmonary embolism and is now recovering.
BASG, however, said: “Currently there is no evidence of a causal relationship with the vaccination.”Swiss newspaper Niederoesterreichische Nachrichten as well as broadcaster ORF and the APA news agency reported that the women were both nurses who worked at the Zwettl clinic.
BASG said blood clotting was not among the known side effects of the vaccine and confirmed it was pursuing its investigation vigorously to completely rule out any possible link.
It noted the vaccine had been approved by the European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation (WHO) based on a global clinical programme involving 23,000 participants.
This is coming two months after South Africa rejected about 1.5 million doses of the same vaccine after evidence emerged that the vaccine did not protect clinical-trial participants from mild or moderate illness caused by the more contagious virus variant that was first seen in the country.
Apart from the concerns raised in Austria and South Africa, preliminary results from a trial of the vaccines are not clear and did not reflect data from older people, the New York Times reported.
Furthermore, concerns about the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine have also hampered its rollout in Italy, with some refusing to have the jab as they believe the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines offer more protection.
British Prime Minister and Labour Party leader Keir Starmer on Monday announced his resignation, bringing an abrupt end to a premiership that began with Labour’s landslide general election victory in July 2024.
Starmer made the announcement in a statement outside 10 Downing Street, where he reflected on his time in office and defended his record in government.
“Every decision I have made has been about putting the country I love first,” Starmer said as he confirmed he would step down as both prime minister and leader of the governing Labour Party.
The resignation marks a dramatic political development in the United Kingdom, coming barely two years after Starmer led Labour back to power following more than a decade in opposition.
His departure is expected to trigger a swift leadership transition within the party at a time of heightened political uncertainty.
Addressing supporters gathered outside Downing Street, Starmer described entering No. 10 in 2024 as “the proudest moment” of his life, saying he entered politics with the goal of improving the lives of millions of people.
The outgoing prime minister also highlighted what he considered some of his key achievements, including rebuilding the Labour Party after years of internal divisions and restoring public confidence in the party’s economic and national security credentials.
Starmer said he inherited a Labour Party that was “politically, financially and morally bankrupt” and faced repeated predictions that it was finished as a political force.
He argued that his leadership helped transform the party, including efforts to tackle anti-Semitism and reposition Labour as a credible alternative government.
His resignation has immediately intensified speculation over his successor. Attention has turned to Andy Burnham, who recently won the Makerfield by-election and is due to be sworn in as a Member of Parliament.
Political observers and Labour insiders believe Burnham could emerge as the overwhelming favourite to take over the party leadership. Some party members are already discussing the possibility of a “coronation” process in which Burnham becomes the sole candidate, avoiding a prolonged leadership contest.
If that scenario unfolds, Labour could have a new leader and prime minister in place by September, around the time of the party’s annual conference.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Biodun Oyebanji, winner of the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election.
Oyebanji secured a landslide victory, polling 319,224 votes to defeat his closest challenger, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Dr. Wole Oluyede, who garnered 40,543 votes. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Dare Bejide, came a distant third with 12,872 votes.
The election, held across all 16 local government areas of the state, was overshadowed by reports of irregularities and widespread allegations of vote buying, drawing strong condemnation from observers.
The official results were announced on Sunday morning by the Chief Returning Officer, Professor Adenike Oladiji, who declared Oyebanji duly elected after meeting the constitutional requirements.
In her declaration, Professor Oladiji stated: “I, Professor Adenike Oladiji, hereby certify that I am the Returning Officer for the Ekiti State Governorship Election held on June 20, 2026, and that the election was conducted in compliance with the provisions of the law. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress, having satisfied the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of valid votes cast, is hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”
Source: Reuters
