COVID-19: Lagos Decries Lack of Modena Vaccine as FG Destroys 1million Doses of AstraZeneca
- The Federal government of Nigeria destroyed expired Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines on Wednesday, December 22, 2021, while Lagos was lamenting the scarcity of Moderna in the state
- Akin Abayomi, Health Commissioner in Lagos asked for understanding from the public who have taken the first shot of Moderna
- Nigeria witnessed a surge of COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, December 22, 2021, with Lagos seeing a spike of about 3,000 cases
The Federal government on Wednesday, December 22, perished about 1,066,242 doses of expired Oxford-Astrazeneca COVID-19 vaccines.
The National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA) executive director, Faisal Shuaib, said this as he addressed reporters before the vaccines were destroyed at a dumpsite in Abuja, Premium Times reported.
Source: UGC
Shuaib said the expired vaccines were withdrawn from some states in the country.
He said:
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“These vaccines did not expire before we decided to withdraw them and today is an opportunity for Nigerians to have further faith in our vaccination programme.
“We had the option if we were to take the advice of some experts to try and use these vaccines even beyond the label expiry date, but working together with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), we took that decision to destroy these vaccines at the point that they got expired.”
Accroding to Shuaib, the government took the action not only to protect the health of Nigerians but to also ensure trust in the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
Scarcity in Lagos, the epicentre
But while the federal government was destroying the vaccines, Lagos state, the epicentre of the pandemic in the country was lamenting the absence of Moderna vaccines.
The state government admitted that the Moderna vaccine is not available at all the vaccination centres in the state and begged the public to understand.
Nigeria recorded 4,035 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, December 22, which represents the highest daily number of cases ever recorded in the country in recent times, with Lagos leading with 3,393 new cases.
The Health Commissioner of Lagos state, Akin Aboyami appealed for understanding on Instagram via his official handle.
He said the scarcity is just for a short while.
What Abayomi is saying
Abayomi said that the supply of vaccines to all states was done exclusively by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).
He said:
At the moment, Lagos State is yet to be supplied with another batch of the Moderna vaccine since the last stock was exhausted. The situation is, however, temporary.
“Lagos State is in touch with NPHCDA to ensure availability of adequate doses of the Moderna vaccine at vaccination centres as soon as possible.
“Please, be rest assured that second doses of Moderna vaccine will be administered to all who have received the first doses as soon as Lagos State receives new supply from NPHCDA.’’
He also revealed that all those who had received the first doses of the Moderna vaccine would be notified and given attention as soon as there is a new supply of Moderna vaccine in the state.
Why Nigeria cannot produce vaccines
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Nigerians who have been wondering about the prospect of the country producing a vaccine now have their answer: The country cannot produce a vaccine for now and the reason is this - the production involves a complex process.
This was made open at the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 media briefing by the executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Faisal Shuaib, The Punch reports. Shuaib said the process of producing a vaccine requires huge investments and technologies.
Source: Legit.ng
