COVID-19 Vaccine Is Safe, Says Physician

• Vaccine

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Dr Rotimi Owolabi, a Public Health Physician and Clinical Researcher in Abuja says
the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and advised Nigerians to take it to prevent contracting the virus when it becomes available.

Owolabi, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday assured the public that research had shown that the vaccine had no serious side effect and effective in checking the spread of the disease.

The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, on Feb. 2 at the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 national briefing in Abuja said “Nigeria is expected to receive the first batch of 15 million COVID-19 vaccines from AstraZeneca under the COVAX programme.

Although the minister was not specific on the date or time, he disclosed that the government had been advised to expect the first batch of the vaccines from February.

Also in a communique issued by Kayode Fayemi, Head of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the country had been working with the World Bank to ensure the supply of the vaccine in the country.

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He stated that “Nigeria is among 12 countries in Africa that have indicated readiness of the 92 qualified countries for the facility and will by end of February 2021 receive its first shipment of vaccines.’’

The public health physician, therefore, explained that the vaccine had been evaluated in clinical trials with procedures in place to ensure its safety before approval for use.

He, however, advised the public to “always observe the COVID-19 protocols through frequent washing of hands, observing social distance and use fact mask while we wait for the vaccine.

Meanwhile, some Nigerians have expressed mixed reactions on whether or not they would receive the COVID-19 vaccine when made available in the country.