Just when many Nigerians thought they had seen the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, recent reports indicate a spike in cases of the disease in the country. Reports in the media raise concerns to the effect that infections in the country have risen by 67 percent in the last two weeks.
Available data also reveal that there was a 390.4 percent increase in testing, which has led to an increase in the report of positive cases. The report, which was released by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), noted that “in weeks 23 and 24, the number of samples tested increased to 75,277 from 15,347 reported in weeks 21 and 22. These were reported in the 36 states and FCT.”
The NCDC report further said that, “In weeks 23 and 24, the number of confirmed cases in absolute numbers increased to 445 from 267 in weeks 21 and 22(May 23 to June 5). “In weeks 23 and 24, discharged cases increased to 185 from 47 in weeks 21 and 22.”
In the opinion of this newspaper, the rising cases of COVID-19 in the country are alarming and the upward trend needs to be stopped. It is instructive to note that in April, the presidential steering committee (PSC) removed all COVID-19 restrictions in the country. The government removed the limit on attendance for social gatherings and the curfew on midnight movements it announced two years previously to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Consequently, there are no more formal restrictions on movement within the country as the nationwide curfew imposed from 12 midnight to 4 am has been lifted. PSC said the social restriction recommendations were revised in line with the three established thematic areas – movement, industry, and labour, as well as community activities.
The government explained that the decision followed the reduced risk of importation of new variants and the availability of vaccines and the increasing number of people vaccinated in Nigeria and globally. It also noted that the use of “face mask to be mandatory for indoor activities but at individual’s discretion during outdoor activities; those aged 60 and above or with co-morbidities such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.”
Needless to say, in our opinion that the total collapse of the COVID-19 protocols may be responsible for the recent hike in the number of cases. Many Nigerians have stopped wearing face masks in public places, markets, offices, schools, and religious houses. Also, the antics and conspiracy theories of some religious and political leaders on the COVID-19 vaccine have not helped at all. This must stop.
The rising cases are not peculiar to Nigeria as the increasing level and hospitalization prove. With the rise of the Omicron sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5 of the COVID-19 in the United Kingdom, some experts have called for a reintroduction of mask-wearing in certain settings.
According to reports, the latest statistics show the number of people infected in the UK has more than doubled since the start of June with around 2.3 million people testing positive. Similarly, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that the globally reported cases of COVID-19 have increased by nearly 30 percent over the past two weeks.
The WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, disclosed this recently during an online COVID-19 media briefing. He said that four out of six of the WHO sub-regions saw cases increasing in the last week. According to him, compounding the challenge are several factors. Ghebreyesus said the first was that testing has reduced dramatically in many countries.
Sadly, in our view, the number of vaccinated Nigerians is not encouraging. Nigeria has received 50.6 million doses of vaccine and about 21 million people have been fully vaccinated which is about 10.2 per cent of the population. This is abysmal compared to other countries.
For example, China has vaccinated 1.26 billion people which is 89.3 per cent of the population. In India, 917 million people have been fully vaccinated which is 66.5 per cent of the population. In the United States, 222 million people have been vaccinated which is 67.5 per cent of the population.
Indeed, as the country enters into the electioneering period, most of the candidates will go around the country and local governments to campaign which will attract large crowds of people and consequently further increase the number of COVID-19 cases in the country.
Given the foregoing, we urge the federal government to step up its effort to vaccinate Nigerians and educate them on the safety and efficacy of the vaccine. Consequently, we urge Nigerians to still adhere to non-pharmaceutical methods like wearing face masks in public places, and the use of hand sanitizers. This will go a long way in reducing the number of infections.
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