By Dan-Maryam Zayamu
The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib, has raised the alarm over what he described as the increasing wave of COVID-19 misinformation and disinformation making the rounds in the country, especially, in the social media circle.
He, therefore, debunked the false information that COVID-19 vaccine can create magnetic effect around the vaccination site and also cause the body to light up an electric bulb.
He stated this with practical demonstration at a media briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.
He, however, assured that despite the unsuccessful efforts of the enemies of the country who want to jeopardize the vaccination process, the NPHCDA has so far vaccinated 2,495,632 people with the first dose, while 1,370,130 have received their second dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.
Overall, he said, Nigeria has successfully utilized 3.9M doses, representing 96% of the 4,024,000 doses of the vaccines received in the country.
He insisted that Nigeria is poised to achieve 100% utilization of the doses of vaccine it has received in the next few days. This is to ensure that people are protected against COVID-19, and normalcy is restored.
“I would like to make very clear and demonstrate publicly that COVID-19 vaccine does not create any magnetic effect around the vaccination site or any part of the body for that matter, neither does it cause the body to light up an electric bulb.
“It is also a well-known fact that persons with wet, moist, or sticky skin can have objects stuck to their skin especially in smooth areas.
“Strong friction also allows for objects to stick to the skin. COVID -19 vaccines do not contain any metal – this is another fact! So how can it generate magnetic field or light an electric bulb?,” he said.
While condemning the detractors of the vaccination process, Shuaib said: “At the onset, it was claimed that COVID-19 was introduced to justify developing vaccines that would be used to depopulate Africans.
“Those who came up with this theory said that anybody who takes the vaccine would die immediately.
“Today, as we all can see, nearly 4 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in Nigeria and we have not recorded any case of death linked to the vaccination.
“On seeing this reality, the rumour mongers changed their narratives into saying that the vaccines used in Europe and America are not the same as the ones used in Africa. Again, as evidence have come to show, it is now clear that the COVID-19 vaccines used in Europe, America and elsewhere in the World are the same used in Nigeria and other countries in Africa.
“The conspiracy theorist went silent about this claim and are now saying that anyone who takes the vaccine will die after two years. Nigerians are predominantly a country of Muslims and Christians.
“We know that these religions are clear that no-one knows the year of the day they will die. So why would we even pay attention to such spurious claims?”
He recalled that same falsehood of children dying after vaccination was spread about Polio vaccine, but that after many years, children who took polio vaccine are still alive and have grown into adulthood and having their own children, as expected.
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