FG debunks N10. 6bn Claims for COVID-19 distribution

ABUJA – The Federal Government has described as fake news that it has budgeted N10.6 billion to transport COVID-19 vaccines to the 36 states and the 774 local government areas, as well as the Federal Capital Ter­ritory (FCT) and the five area councils.

Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Fais­al Shuaib, debunked this after the brief ceremony, where President Muham­madu Buhari, together with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, received the first doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

President Buhari and Vice President Osinbajo got the jab live on TV, a day after the COVID-19 national vaccine pro­gramme commenced with the vaccination of healthcare and frontline workers at the National Hospital, Abuja.

Shuaib explained that private sector-led Coalition Against COVID-19 (CA­COVID) had undertaken to distribute the vaccines to states at no cost to the government.

He said: “I mean, I’m hearing this from you for the first time. It doesn’t make any sense that on the one hand, we’ve com­municated very clearly to Nigerians that the Co­alition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID), a private sec­tor initiative, has provided a cargo plane that will help deliver the vaccines from Abuja to all states that have functional airports.