The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Ali Pate, has rejected the rumored resurgence of COVID-19 in the country, asserting that there is no scientific research evidence supporting the claims.
Professor Pate made this revelation during the inaugural public lecture series of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo in Benue State, where his Senior Special Adviser, Emmanuel Oduh, represented him.
“The diagnosis of COVID is a scientific process. It is not something that is subjective and you speculate about. There could be speculations but once investigations are conducted and it is confirmed that it is not really a case of COVID, it is not COVID,” he said on Friday.
According to him, Nigeria has in the past fared well in combating pandemics.
“First, there came the Ebola virus. Nigeria was number one or thereabouts in its control. And then in COVID-19, we did not fare badly at all. As a matter of fact, our performance in spite of the status of our health sector, is among the best in the world,” he added.
The minister, who charged the newly established medical university in Nigeria with the responsibility of training a proficient medical workforce amidst the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasized high expectations for their mission.
The Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Professor Innocent Ujah, added that thirty consultants have been enlisted to instruct over three hundred proficient health workers.