Thread by @AladejanaDeji

Dear @JaafarSJaafar,
I read through your post and I'd like to shed more light on a couple of things you seem not to understand. I would've normally ignored the post but I saw that it has several comments (in support) and over 200 retweets already.
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https://twitter.com/JaafarSJaafar/status/1260704056080764939

Before you (unintentionally) mislead the public, let's help you understand some point you are missing out.
1. Your "sampling" method is WRONG. Ordinarily, if you put out a tweet asking people if they have experienced symptoms close to that of Covid-19 since the pandemic...
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started, thousands will answer in affirmative. Most of them aren't lying. This is because a couple of other illnesses have symptoms quite similar to that of Covid-19. I showed symptoms similar to that about two months ago, I eventually got treated for malaria!
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So your assumption that those who answer in affirmative and are now fine had contracted and recovered from Covid-19 is not just wrong, it's baseless scientifically and has the capacity to misinform the public. I'll advise you to take down the post.
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2. You criticised the method the @NCDCgov has adopted in its response to the Covid-19 pandemic. I totally disagree with that! The method adopted by NCDC is the most effective way to tackle a pandemic like Covid-19. Our neighbours, Ghana, who are using the method...
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you suggested are currently struggling with the consequence of such methods. Their method, especially the testing method gave then several "false-negative result", they also lifted the lockdown too early. Now, they are experiencing a spike in the number of confirmed cases!
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It's not just about testing a lot of people, it's more about testing people who might have had contact with the virus (or a confirmed case) and also people who are already showing symptoms. @NCDCgov contact tracing strategy has no equal on this continent!
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If you had been reading the guideline they post regularly on their website, you would've understood why things are the way they are right now and how you, as a citizen, can actively participate in the fight to end the spread of the virus in Nigeria.
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I agree, we need to double our effort now that the infection rate isn't slowing down, but all the efforts of @Chikwe_I and his team at NCDC will be fruitless if we, the citizens, do not do our own part - taking responsibility!
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3. That antibiotics are freely available in pharmacies and drug stores gave rise to abuse. Now, the world is almost losing the battle against antibiotic-resistant pathogens as it has become difficult to discover more potent antibiotics - I am saying this authoritatively...
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as I have participated in research to discover novel antibiotics as far back as my time as an undergraduate student of Microbiology. Now, imagine if the drug used to manage Covid-19 patients is freely available in drug stores or pharmacies...
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All those people that told you they had shown symptoms would haven rushed there to swallow pills without testing! How are we going to curtail abuse? The Doctors you mentioned, how many Doctors do we have in Nigeria? What's the doctor-patient rate in Nigeria?
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Won't those doctors be overwhelmed if we adopt your "strategy" of treating everyone with symptoms? And who says we are gunning towards herd immunity? A lot of people will die if we choose to pursue herd immunity, I am sure our government know that...
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and they CANNOT make such a mistake.
I understand you are just concerned as a citizen and you want this to be over ASAP, but let's leave the work to the experts and do that which they have requested us to do. That's how we all can survive this and return to our normal lives..
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soon enough.
Please stay safe and best wishes for the days ahead.
Regards.

END