Speaking at a media briefing in Geneva, the WHO Director
General, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus lamented that 18 months after the declaration
of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was still in the grip of the deadly virus.
Owing to this, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu,
has called on residents of the state to be cautious and take all necessary
precaution to avoid the spread of the virus as well as any mishap relating to
fire and security misfortune in the state during the festive period.
This is just as in Nigeria, the House of Representatives
yesterday passed a controversial bill which seeks to repeal the Quarantine Act
and enact the Control of Infectious Diseases Bill, make provisions relating to
quarantine and make regulations for preventing the spread of dangerous
infectious diseases in the country.
Ghebreyesus expressed sadness that more than 3.3 million
people had lost their lives to COVID-19 this year, more deaths than from HIV,
malaria and tuberculosis combined in 2020.
“And still, COVID-19 continues to claim around 50 000 lives
every week. That’s not to mention the unreported deaths, and the millions of
excess deaths caused by disruptions to essential health services,” he said.
The WHO chief said Africa was facing a steep wave of
infections, driven largely by the Omicron variant.
He cautioned that increased social mixing over the holiday
period in many countries could lead to increased cases, overwhelmed health
systems and more deaths.
Ghebreyesus said a month ago, Africa was reporting its
lowest number of cases in 18 months, adding that last week the country reported
the fourth-highest number of cases in a single week so far.
“There is now consistent evidence that Omicron is spreading
significantly faster than the Delta variant.
“And it is more likely that people who have been vaccinated
or have recovered from COVID-19 could be infected or re-infected,” he said.
Apparently expressing his frustration about the COVID-19,
Ghebreyesus said: “All of us are sick of this pandemic. All of us want to spend
time with friends and family. All of us want to get back to normal.”
He said the fastest way to achieve relief from the pandemic
was for all leaders and individuals to take difficult decisions that to protect
their citizens.
According to him, this would mean cancelling or delaying
events if necessary.
“If we are to end the pandemic in the coming year, we must
end inequity, by ensuring 70 per cent of the population of every country is
vaccinated by the middle of next year,” he said.
WHO had last week issued Emergency Use Listing for a ninth
vaccine, produced by the Serum Institute of India under license from Novavax.
“This new vaccine is part of the COVAX portfolio, and we
hope that it will play an important role in achieving our global vaccination
targets,” he added.
Ghebreyesus further spoke of the debilitating impact of the
COVID-19 which had weakened ability to attend to other health challenges.
He said the pandemic had caused setbacks in the efforts to
defeat the world’s leading infectious diseases.
According to him, there were an estimated 14 million more
malaria cases and 47 thousand more malaria deaths in 2020 compared to 2019.
He said a new data released this year, showed that 23
million children missed out on routine vaccines in 2020, the largest number in
over a decade.
The WHO boss added that the situation had increased risks
from preventable diseases such as measles and polio. He further recalled that
the world body launched a global road map to defeat meningitis by 2030.
On the outlook for 2022, the WHO chief expressed hope that
the year would see an end to the pandemic.
He said it would be a year that all countries would invest
in preventing a future disaster on a large scale, and in accelerating efforts
to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
Sanwo-Olu Cautions Lagosians
Sanwo-Olu called on Lagosians to be on alert against another
wave of COVID-19 by adhering strictly to all safety protocols during the
Christmas period.
Speaking at the grand finale of the ‘Year 2021 Community Day
Celebration,’ held at Police College, Ikeja yesterday, Sanwo-Olu also advised
residents in the various communities across the state to be responsive by
providing intelligence to security agents.
He urged them to promptly report anything they see to
security agents at the community level.
He said: “As Community Development Council (CDC) leaders,
please take the message back home that because of the harsh weather during the
harmattan season, fire is always a very easy occurrence.
“So, people need to live safely. Stay safe and make sure you
don’t have combustible items around your shops, houses, and ensure precautions
on electric gadgets to avert fire incidents.
“Security they say is local. Security is important at the
grassroots level. You have been working with us, continue to work with us. You
see something, you say something. All the neighborhood watchers are in your
communities; let them know if you see strange movements.
“If you notice things that are not meant to be in your communities,
pass on the message to them and you can be rest assured that the security
agents will come around to keep you safe and secured. As we are going into the
yuletide season, please let’s be very vigilant and make sure that we are our
brothers’ keeper.”
The governor also added that, “We are getting out of the
COVID-19 but we cannot be completely relaxed. In all of our engagements, let’s
continue to keep those simple safety protocols.”
According to a statement, Sanwo-Olu, while speaking on his
administration’s commitment to community development, said his government as a
people-oriented government had executed grassroots improvement programme across
the state.
He said the government was committed to promoting
coordinated efforts for a peaceful, harmonious and serene atmosphere for growth
and development in communities.
He said the Community Development Associations (CDAs) in
Lagos State are the engine for growth and therefore called on the various CDAs
to join hands with the government to ensure safety and security of lives and
property in Lagos, particularly during the festive season.
House Passes Controversial Infectious Diseases’ Bill
Meanwhile, the proposed legislation in the House of
Representatives titled: “A Bill for an Act to Repeal the Quarantine Act and
Enact the Control of Infectious Diseases Bill, make Provisions Relating to
Quarantine and make Regulations for Preventing the Introduction into and Spread
in Nigeria of Dangerous Infectious Diseases; and for Related Matters; (HB.
836),” was sponsored by the Speaker, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila; the Chairman
Committee on Healthcare Services, Hon. Tanko Sununu and Chairman Committee on
Health Institutions, Hon. Pascal Obi.
The Bill which was introduced and passed for second reading
by the lawmakers in May 2020. The proposed legislation among others seeks to
strengthen the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and make it more
proactive and not just reactive and function when there is an outbreak.
The bill also seeks to empower the Minister of Health as
well as the director-general of NCDC, to make regulations on quarantining,
vaccination and prevention of infectious diseases in Nigeria.
While supporting the bill, Gbajabiamila had said the
emergence of COVID-19 pandemic bedeviling the world, makes it ideal to seek
reforms of the public health emergency frameworks of the country.
According to him, the new bill would replace the Quarantine
Act and tackle the limitations of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)
on curbing the spread of diseases.
However the bill birthed several controversies and
criticisms from Nigerians, including 36 State Governors that condemned it,
calling for it to be stepped down. They had said the bill lacked proper
consultation. Also allegations that the House collected $10 million bribe from
a foreign sponsor to speedily pass the bill trailed it at the time.
In his reaction, Gbajabiamila said the allegation that the
bill was a sinister attempt to turn Nigerians into guinea pigs for medical
research while taking away their fundamental human rights was far from the
truth.
While stating that members of the House would never
contemplate doing anything that would jeopardise the wellbeing of the citizens,
promised that a public hearing would be held on the bill.
Gbajabiamila also set up a 12-man committee to look into
allegations that he and some members of the House collected $10 million bribe
from a foreign sponsor to speedily pass the bill.
The Public Hearing, which held over a two-day period in
June, 2020, at the National Assembly Complex saw the participation of diverse
stakeholders ranging from government agencies to civil society organisations,
religious and professional bodies and special interest groups who came in their
numbers to make their views on the controversial bill known.
At the plenary yesterday, Tanko Sununu (Kebbi, APC) moved
for the consideration of the report on the bill and it was seconded by Hon.
Henry Nwawuba (Imo, PDP).
Presenting the report, Sununu said the Bill which contains 6
parts and 81 sections, is aimed at getting the country positioned to address
public health challenges caused by infectious chemicals, radiations and other
agents.
“The bill was passed for second reading, it was aimed at
getting the country positioned to address public health challenges caused by
infectious chemicals, radiations and other agents. It contains 6 parts and 81
sections. The committee deliberated severely and conducted a well-attended
public hearing and organised a report drafting section to all members of the
committee to produce the report as presented. After a diligent consideration, I
wish to seek the leave of the chairman for the report to be considered by the
committee of the whole. The bill has the capacity to improve the health system
in Nigeria.”
Thereafter, the House suspended its relevant rules and moved
that the bill and other bills be passed for third reading.
With this passage, the bill will be sent to Senate for
concurrence for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari for possible
assent.
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