A medical doctor at the National Hospital, Abuja, Dr. Cyprian Ngong, on Friday received a jab of the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine, officially kicking off vaccination exercise for the deadly virus in Nigeria.
Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha; Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire and Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib witnessed the first set of vaccinations for frontline health workers in Abuja.
After receiving the jab, Ngong, who has been treating patients at the National Hospital Isolation Centre, disclosed that he lost his father to the virus.
The doctor said he wished his father got the vaccine before succumbing to the virus.
“We’ve been at the forefront here in National Hospital at the Isolation Centre under the able leadership of the National Hospital. They’ve provided everything we need for this fight.
“We’ve lost some, we’ve got some and we are happy we are getting the vaccines now in Nigeria.
“That is about the best news we’ve heard since. I only wished my dad had had this vaccine maybe months ago or so. We lost him but we thank God and the fight is still on and we will win,” the doctor said.
Recall that the first batch of nearly 4 million doses of AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine arrived Nigeria on Tuesday.
President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are to be publicly vaccinated on Saturday.
Nigerian governors and their deputies also announced that they would be vaccinated on Wednesday, March 10.