Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello on Friday for the umpteenth time pooh-poohed the Covid-19 outbreak in the country as he said he would not take the vaccine, noting he is hale and hearty.
The vaccines were rolled out on Friday in Nigeria with four frontline health workers becoming the first set of Nigerians to be inoculated.
President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are expected to get their vaccine jab Saturday in Abuja on live TV to boost public confidence in the vaccination programme.
However, Bello, in an interview on Channels TV’s ‘Today Politics’, said President Buhari could take the vaccine, but that he would not.
“Mr President is the leader of this country. I respect him so high; all of us respect him so much. We love him and he is leading by example. If he needs to take the vaccines and he takes it, it is a welcome development.
“As far as I am concerned, I as a person, I don’t need to take vaccines. There is nothing wrong with me, I am hale and hearty. I am 100 per cent healthy. I won’t take any vaccine,” he said.
Bello stated that COVID-19 is not the business of people in Kogi State, saying that the state has more pertinent issues, including Lassa Fever that it’s attending to.
He said his administration met insecurity and is tackling it, among several other challenges.
“Disunity, we met on ground and we have united Kogi State today not COVID-19. COVID-19 is just a minute aspect of what we are treating or handling in Kogi State; there have been outbreaks of Lassa Fever and Yellow Fever and those were handled without making noise about it.
“The last Yellow Fever (outbreak), we vaccinated out people against Yellow Fever, we encouraged them, we educated them and they felt the impact,” he said.
Bello said if the Federal Government is gracious enough and give Kogi COVID-19 vaccines, his government would equally sensitise its people and that those who wished to come and take the vaccine could come and take it.
“But I am not going to subject the people of Kogi State to vaccines or vaccination and I will not make them the guinea pigs,” he said.
