The Minister of State for Education State, Hon. Emeka Nwajiuba, has said he was misquoted on calling Covid-19 a sham.
Nwajiuba, during the briefing of the Presidential Taskforce Force (PTF) on Covid-19 Thursday, reacted to a report purportedly published by the Pilot newspaper, alleging that the Minister called Covid-19 a sham.
The Minister said that no responsible member of the PTF would make such a statement bearing in mind the enormous responsibilities the President and the nation had bestowed on the group.
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He said he only submitted a proposal from his ministry on strategies on how to reopen our schools without endangering the lives of Nigeria’s children.
According to him, he never made the comment credited to him in the course of his presentation at the National Assembly on 23rd June.
He said all the measures that have been taken in the response to the pandemic are governed by data and science.
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Nwajiuba disclosed that the ministry now have sufficient information to make decisions on the reopening of schools next week.
He said although the government has been under pressure to reopen schools amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it would resist such.
His words: “The Ministry is indeed under intense pressure to reopen schools but will never succumb to such pressure until the infection curve begins to flatten.
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“The Ministry of Education reaffirms its commitment to the safety of the Nigerian children and would, therefore, not do anything to compromise their safety. The Federal Government is aware of the damages coronavirus has caused to the lives of people and economies globally, including Nigeria. We will, therefore, not compromise an inch in this regard, no matter the blackmail.
“The Honourable Minister of State and indeed the Ministry is also of the belief that no child should die of COVID -19 due to schools being reopened at the wrong time and therefore, will resist all pressure to do so,” the minister said.
