Coronavirus: More schoolchildren will be infected, NMA cautions

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has cautioned that more school children will be infected with COVID-19, as schools reopened in some states of the federation.

According to the NMA, the Federal Government have no available data to adequately know the level of preparedness of schools with respect to complying with the safety protocols by Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

“What we have been saying is that this Coronavirus pandemic is totally unprepared for and that has been since it started. But one year after, what lessons have we learnt?

"We know that students should go to school, and we know that they should maintain the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) protocol, but what have we done in schools?

“Whether it is a public or private school, injury to one is an injury to all. The truth is that we have no statistics as far as I know of the number of schools that are ready, whether public or private and what they should put in place. I think that we are very sentimental as a nation. Let us follow the advice of experts.

“While we are saying that schools should reopen, we should be prepared and there should be monitoring. Who are those monitoring and supervising the process?

“Even those who are not in schools are not obeying. How much compliance do we have amongst people on the streets to the NCDC protocols? The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has been singing that we need to comply.

“Now, suddenly people are saying children should go to school but what evidence do they have? If the Ministry of Education says so, who are the supervisors and where do we go to monitor or to supervise the process? It is not just sitting on the roundtable and saying that we want the schools to be reopened and there should be no problem. We have suffered these because people do not listen to experts.

“As an association, we have cautioned on all grounds, and our own is to advocate and bring out the scientific component and not the political and sentimental components of this pandemic. That is why we are facing what we are facing today. We are overwhelmed with the second wave, there are no oxygens, the hospitals are overwhelmed. Why should we wait until we are overwhelmed before we react? That is what we called emergency preparedness and response,” the NMA President, Prof. Innocent Ujah said.