“Kogi People Will Not Take COVID Vaccine, We Are Not Guinea Pigs” – Governor Yahaya Bello

Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello has declared that he won’t subject the people of the state to receive the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccines.

KanyiDaily recalls that Nigeria received 3.94 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine through the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Assess Facility (COVAX) on Tuesday, March 2, 2021.

Following the arrival of the vaccines, President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, state Governors and other government officials are expected to receive the jabs on Saturday.

However, during an interview on Channels TV programme on Friday, Governor Bello said there was nothing medically wrong with him and he won’t allow Kogi people to be used as “guinea pigs”.

“COVID-19 is not our business in Kogi State. We have more pertinent issues and more pertinent matters that we are attending to in Kogi State. Insecurity we met, we’ve tackled it and several others. Disunity we met on ground and we have united Kogi State today not COVID-19.

“COVID-19 is just a minute aspect of what we are treating or handling in Kogi State; there have been outbreaks of Lassa Fever and Yellow Fever and those were handled without making noise about it.

“The last Yellow Fever (outbreak), we vaccinated out people against Yellow Fever, we encouraged them, we educated them and they felt the impact…If the Federal Government is gracious enough and give us COVID-19 vaccines, we will equally sensitise our people, people who wish to come and take can come and take but I am not going to subject the people of Kogi State to vaccines or vaccination and I will not make them the guinea pigs.

Bello added that; “Mr President is the leader of this country. I respect him so high; all of us respect him so much. We love him and he is leading by example. If he needs to take the vaccines and he takes it, it is a welcome development.

“As far as I am concerned, I as a person, I don’t need to take vaccines. There is nothing wrong with me, I am hale and hearty. I am 100 per cent healthy…I won’t take any vaccine.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has said COVID-19 vaccination will not be mandatory in Nigeria, adding that nobody will be forced to take any vaccine.