Fear of COVID-19

By Femi Oluwasanmi

Sir: Since 1999, majority of people at the receiving end of the dilapidated medical facilities, ill-treatment from the unmotivated medical personnel, and other chronic deficiencies in Nigerian health sector have been the masses. That was until recently when the elite joined them to share the same experience due to border closure policy in most countries of the world.

Today, the same government and the elites that have shown insensitivity to the condition of medical facilities in the country have begun to show concern to the extent of donating money, buildings among others to prevent further escalation of the Coronavirus currently threatening humanity especially our highly placed officials.

While this would ordinarily be commendable as it further consolidates the existing efforts to reposition the nation’s health sector; at the same time, the manner with which it is being done shows clearly that the fear of the virus at the corridors of power and the elite is what necessitated the fire brigade approach.

Statistically, the number of people that have lost their lives due to hunger-related cases in Nigeria since the beginning of this year alone is more than the number of those affected by the Coronavirus; yet no serious effort is being made to tackle the “Corona of hunger and poverty”.

Rather we see are “newspaper empowerment and projects” displayed on daily basis on media platforms. And instead of coming up with strong social welfare scheme to ameliorate their hardship, the government continues to close down shops, market centres among other areas where people get their daily bread all in the name of war against Coronavirus.

While the closure of commercial centres to curtail the spread of the pandemic is not a bad idea, the insensitivity of the government to the peculiarity and reality in Nigeria is one aspect of the Coronavirus war needs to be reviewed.

In the other climes, where self-isolation, social distancing among others are adopted to curtail the spread of the virus, serious social welfare packages and other palliative measures are dispensed to the citizens to reduce the resultant hardship. But in Nigeria, the average Nigerian is left to strive for survival in the midst of total shut down of businesses and other sources of livelihood.

No wonder people violate the directives made to prevent them from going to their workplaces and worship centres despite the fact that they are aware of how deadly the virus is. Just imagine some Nigerians going to the extent of burning down Police Station in Katsina State!

The government needs to recalibrate its strategies to accommodate strong social welfare programmes and other approaches that have human face. Self-isolation and, social distancing should not translate to keeping food from the table of the masses.

• Femi Oluwasanmi, Ibafo, Ogun State.