Covid 19,a strain of Coronavirus found its way to Nigeria on February 27,2020.through an Italian in Lagos.
On March 9,2020, a man in Ogun State who had contact with the Italian tested positive for Coronavirus.
The Index and second cases coupled with unscreened persons at ports and land borders led to widespread Infection but very little awareness was done on the virus’s potency of spread.
It would be recalled that at the time of the Index and second cases, Europe had become worst hit with Italy becoming the next epicenter after Wuhan China, sadly that was the best time Nigerian elites chose to travel out of the country and return.
Regrettably the Nigerian government did not see the need to impose stringent measures such as closing of major airports,seaports and land borders as persons infected with the virus flocked in to the country and affected others.
Though it is not easy to recall and dwell in the past,yet the fact remains that the past could teach lessons that would prove useful for the future.
A Nation with a population of over 200million people would have been alarmed by what was happening in other countries where the pandemic dealt a horrendous blow by putting its house in order but that didn’t matter.
It only mattered when big men began to test positive for Coronavirus,some who were lucky returned from the hospital while others never made it out.
That was the dawn of a new day for the Nigerian government. That was a wake up call for state governments to be aware that something deadly had crept into the country and the pendulum could swing to any direction.
If only the federal government had acted on time, in terms of contact tracing, vigorous public enligtenment and restriction of movement there would be less fright as, the number of cases and deaths would have been minimized.
By acting on time, countries like South Korea, New Zealand, Iceland and Germany had fewer covid 19 cases and low mortality rates.
Interestingly, most of
those countries have women as the heads of their government.
Be that as it may, the trend of the virus in the country suggests that even with rising cases, covid-19 has not reached its peak.
This is not to say that the rate of Infection is going down or it is a licence to go back to normal but presumptive of the county’s capacity in testing to ascertain the actual impact of the pandemic in the country.
World’s health experts suggest testing of about one percent of a country’s population, one percent of Nigeria,’s population is about 2million and it does not appear that the country has tested even a quater of a percent.
The Secretary To The Government Of The Federation ,Boss Mustapha had warned that the curve of the pandemic has not flattened as he expressed fear that in the coming weeks the number of covid 19 fatalities might rise and create panic.
If what the SGF fears is anything to go by then the government should not be pressured to lifting restrictions on airport’s and interstate movement for now. While it is necessary for government to rethink the restrictions it lifted on public gathering including political gathering.
Life is sacrosant to expose at the alter of a coronavirus whose origin and mode ofoperation is a jig saw puzzle for scientists more than 6 months it made appearance.
World Health Organisation has advised that safety measures should be taken very seriously as the virus is very dangerous and vaccines could take 2 years to get to all countries of the world.
WHO Special Envoy on covid-19,Dr David Nabarro had advised countries who have reopened to be vigilant and heed experts advise to stay safe
Studies have revealed that compliance lowers Infection rate as countries lifting restrictions have seen spikes in the spread of the virus.
In Wuhan,early epicenter of the pandemic, China took contact tracing and Isolation very seriously and successfully enforced tough measures like total lockdown with incentives.
In Nigeria and elsewhere, there is denial of danger of covid 19 even where lnfectious diseases expert’s have described covid 19 as their worst nightmare.
A good example are views expressed by some Nigerians concerning the coronavirus.
Some Nigerians are of the view that the virus is malaria which could be treated with “Dogoyaro’ leaves and”Agbo’ a traditional liquid concoction, others think that any malaria medicine at the pharmacy could be a tonic for wellness.while others are of the opinion that the virus may have been the result of either the 5g network or an attempt by some countriy to establish a new world order..
John Hopkins University gives globally Coronavirus cases exceeding 9million with over 48thousand deaths.
Nigeria has confirmed cases above 20thousand and over 500 deaths
It is worrisome that at this point in time people are still treating the covid-19 with humour congregate,shake hands and shun wearing of face masks despite health officials warning of the consequences for doing so
What is more troubling is seeing and hearing leaders who ought to be good examples to followers treat coronavirus as an illusion.
The warning by the SGF is timely however measures to stop the spikes or mitigate the spread of covid 19 are lacking.
Testing capacity is abysmally low as test kits are in short supply.
Government had announced closure of land borders and interstate movements but reports indicated otherwise.
Till date, large gatherings are encouraged with people paying little or no attention to self preventive measures even as experts warn that vaccines being developed may not be made available to poorer countries like Nigeria until in 2 years.
Political activities have commenced in earnest on a large scale as party
primaries are being held in states that are preparing to choose their governors.
It is not unlikely that there would be further spread of the virus since such gathering could be potential and evidential channels of spread.
Protection of lives of citizens is a core mandate of Mr President and Governors and it is believed that they are leaving no stone unturned in avoiding alarming deaths.
More than half of Nigeria’s population are pauperized and vulnerable and it would not be a good gesture stretching them further.
With the plunge in oil prices and low revenue from the liquid gold,which accounts for 92% of the nation’s income,it is difficult for Nigeria to manage a health crisis which is overwhelming and more difficult for those who earn little or nothing.
Palliatives are good but as the name suggests they are no means to an end.
In some cases where palliatives were given,they were distributed along party and family lines.
Government should as a matter of urgency give bailout to small and medium scale busineses who are drivers of the economy. While it should not lose sight of those who do not have support to start any business of their own.
