Coronavirus: Six Reasons Nigerians Are Worried

On Friday morning, the news most Nigerians have dreaded in the last few weeks broke over the airwaves: Nigeria confirms its first case of COVID-19. The victim was an Italian who flew into the country (Lagos) from Milan, Italy on Tuesday, February 25, 2020.

According to the health minister, Osagie Ehanire, the victim is at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Lagos where medical personnel are currently monitoring his situation. The minister did also reveal that the victim is “clinically stable with no serious symptoms.”

The news expectedly sparked a deluge of reactions from a cross-section of Nigerians as several news outlets beamed attention on the raging pandemic during their breakfast shows. Many commentators expressed shock that the Italian’s condition was not discovered during the regular screening at the airport. He subsequently chartered a taxi, was driven into a Lagos hotel, visited Ogun state and possibly held interactions with scores of staff at his place of work, hotel workers, taxi drivers and God-knows-who else.

There were also a few who commended the government for what they called its “swift response” to the developing crisis.  Trust Nigerians; there were a few who insinuated that “since the Italian showed no serious symptoms and has remained clinically stable,” the whole thing may be a giant hoax to con Nigerians and embezzle the hundreds of millions of naira already mapped out for the control of the virus by the federal government.

Being a strictly religious people, many callers to morning phone-in programmes on Abuja radio stations advocated for “serious prayers and supplications” to get us out of the quagmire. It was an interesting topic and several callers made decent contributions that if the authorities can consider, could greatly ameliorate the crisis.

On the social media platforms, the news was the most dominant conversation as many shared their thoughts, views and fears on the outbreak of what many now consider a pandemic.  Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and candidate of the PDP in the 2019 presidential election also weighed in with series of advice for the Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government. He advised the government to jettison its popular culture of pointing accusing fingers at others or seeking scapegoats while dominant issues remain unattended to.  The former Vice President asked the authorities to adopt the same proactive template Nigeria employed in 2014 to defeat the Ebola virus.

From the general interactions as monitored over the airwaves and across social media platforms, one can observe that there is a heightened sense of fear and anxiety over the first reported case of COVID-19 in the country. Many are concerned that there could be more victims out there who could be spreading the virus in several communities. Questions like “who did the Italian interact with? Could he be the only one with the virus on the flight?” and the likes are being asked. The concerns raised by commentators are varied but can be viewed under six subheadings namely:

1. Government inefficiency: The present government in Nigeria is notorious for its industrial-scale inefficiency. The outbreak of the virus has dominated the news across the world since December 2019 and yet, the Italian was allowed to sneak into the country without proper screening at the airport. What was the level of preparedness of the airport officials knowing that people from various parts of the world- including areas affected by the virus were flocking into the country? Were officials offered protective gears to enable them to do their work without being exposed to the virus? Can the government beat its chest and say it did everything it was supposed to have done after it was announced that the virus had made its entry into the African continent? So Nigerians are understandably worried that the government has no record of being proactive, solving problems or doing some of the very basic things that can prevent an escalation of crises. Do you see why many are already looking for supernatural solutions?

2. The unpreparedness of most state governments to deal with the virus: From what was gathered in the news this morning, it does appear that only the Lagos state government has put in some semblance of machineries in place to deal with the virus. The Lagos state ministry of health has been on a massive sensitisation exercise in the last few weeks, enlightening Nigerians on the symptoms of the virus, preventive measures and what telephone lines to call should they suspect any abnormality in their system. Sadly, the same cannot be said of the other 35 states and Abuja where scores of millions of Nigerians live.

3. Funding for the health sector: The health sector in Nigeria is largely underfunded and that can be seen from the paucity of equipment at the health institutions, the dearth of personnel and the refusal of the elites- including the president and members of the first family to submit themselves for treatment at any of the local health facilities. Agencies like the Centre for Disease Control, the primary health institutions and the general hospitals have been crying for increased funding for years. How would this reality affect the country’s ability to deal with increased cases of Coronavirus?

4. Fake news: In 2014 when the Ebola virus hit our shores, messages were circulated across several platforms inviting Nigerians to bath with salt and hot water as a way of inoculating themselves against the disease. Many religiously did that and even drank salt solutions to keep themselves safe. Till date, no one, not even those who circulated the information knew the source. How would fake news or unverified information hinder the country’s ability to deal with the Coronavirus? Can the nation’s information managers be at the top of their games to stop the flow of fake news before it gains traction?

5. A culture of poor hygiene: Experts have advised constant washing of hands with alcohol-based sanitizers and proper hygiene around homes, schools and offices as a way of curbing the spread of the virus. While these may seem simple, the truth is that practices such as regular washing of hands, proper disposal of waste products- including human wastes are not generally widespread and should the virus spread beyond what we know presently, our negligence may be a real concern.

6. Self-medication and the menace of unorthodox medicine retailers: Going to see a doctor except in critical emergencies is not something most Nigerians are accustomed to. It is more convenient to go to the patent medicine dealer in the neighbourhood, ask for common drugs like Paracetamol and malaria drugs to treat cases of fever and if the symptoms persist after some days, the dosage is simply increased or when orthodox medicine fails to work, many switch to local herb dealers who seem to regularly have one common drug that cures a dozen diseases. Who knows when they would also start hawking “Coronavirus” concoction at motor parks or on the streets? Are regulators of drugs in Nigeria (NAFDAC) ready to curtail what may worsen a very bad situation in the next few weeks?