BY AKINWALE ABOLUWADE, IBADAN
The Oyo State Government has flagged off its mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
The scheme was launched on Tuesday at the Aleshinloye Market with the state government urging the residents to take advantage of the free service to get vaccinated.
As the exercise kicked-off, Governor Seyi Makinde received a COVID-19 booster shot for protection against the virus.
The governor stated that the flag-off was a step towards curtailing the spread of COVID-19, saying that “I want to specially recognise our development partners because you have given us the vaccines for free and we are also giving it to our people free of charge.
“We are here to flag off the mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Oyo State. It is close to two years now when the first case was reported in Nigeria and it subsequently hit us in the state. The majority of the people think it would vanish in three or four months but it is now close to two years that we have been battling with it.
“From the beginning of the pandemic, we have known that this will be with us for a very long time. I heard the Speaker saying that maybe by this time next year, we would be celebrating a COVID-19-free environment. Well, there is nothing God cannot do. But you see, science, logic, and data are still saying that this virus is going to be with us for some time.
“The first flu, the Spanish flu that occurred in 1916 is still around till now and it is still with us. We only have slight symptoms like sneezing, cold and so on but that flu is a very serious disease in other places. The prayer we should continue to say is that this infection will not claim our lives.
“This flag-off is just another logical step that we are taking to contain COVID-19 in Oyo State, which is still based on data and science that vaccines are safe in protecting us against the worst effects of the virus. Even the worldwide data supports our position.”
