As Nigeria continues to witness high cases of COVID-19 in the third wave, the Federal Government is considering taking some punitive measures against Nigerians who endanger the lives of others by refusing COVID-19 vaccination.
Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Faisal Shuaib, gave the hint at a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday
He explained that the Federal Government may “apply the basic rule of law” against such people because they will be endangering the lives of other people.
Shuaib stated that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is making frantic efforts in making the vaccines more accessible to all Nigerians.
He said, “If some individuals refuse to take the vaccine, hence endangering those who have or those who could not due to medical exemptions, then we have to apply the basic rule of law which stipulates that your human right stops where mine begins,”
“So, you have a right to refuse vaccines, but you do not have the right to endanger the health of others.
“The Presidential Steering Committee and the Federal Ministry of Health is exploring ways of making vaccines more available to all Nigerians including federal civil servants and corporate entities.
“Once these vaccines are made equitably available to all Nigerians, then we would need to have a frank discussion about justice, fairness and liberty that exist around vaccine hesitancy.”
Shuaib’s comments come two days after the nation recorded 93 deaths from COVID-19 and 362 new cases.
Giving a breakdown of the figures, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), said the fresh cases were reported in 15 states and the Federal Capital Territory with Lagos being the nation’s epicentre of the virus.
In a bid to win the fight against the disease, authorities have stepped up efforts to ensure citizens take the COVID-19 vaccine for more protection against the virus.
The Federal Government has asked people to go to the various vaccination centres to take the first jab of the Moderna vaccine, as well as the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
They have also encouraged everyone to continue to adhere to the measures put in place to curb the spread of the disease even after taking the vaccine until the nation attains herd immunity.