Coronavirus: NCDC denies spending N1bn on sending text messages to Nigerians
- The NCDC has debunked the report claiming the agency has spent one billion naira on sending SMS to Nigerians
- The federal health agency said its communication to Nigerians through SMS has been largely supported by Nigeria's major telecommunication companies
- The NCDC had also spoken on how the majority of those who contracted COVID-19 recovered from the virus
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reacted to a report claiming that the federal health agency has spent one billion naira on sending SMS (text message) to Nigerians.
In a tweet posted on its official Twitter handle on Thursday, April 9, the NCDC described the report as false.
The agency explained that its communication to Nigerians through SMS has been largely provided as "in-kind support" by Nigeria's major telecommunication companies.
"While communication through SMS is a key part of our #COVID19 response strategy, this has been largely provided as in-kind support by @AirtelNigeria @MTNNG @GloWorld," the NCDC explained.
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Chikwe Ihekweazu, the director-general of the NCDC disclosed that 90% of COVID-19 patients recover without any intervention.
Ihekweazu made this known at the media briefing of the presidential task force on COVID-19 on Wednesday, April 8.
The NCDC boss was reacting to a question on how the governor of Oyo state, Seyi Makinde, recovered from the virus in less than one week.
He said what a COVID-19 patient usually requires is support for the body to recover by itself.
He said: “We should remember that 90 per cent of these patients recover without any intervention. So, if you take something and say you recovered and that something is why you recovered, it doesn’t quite add up."
The NCDC boss further explained that very few viruses have a cure.
He said COVID-19 patients are given oxygen at the hospital which is not a treatment but administered to keep the patients alive for long enough to recover yourself.
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In another related report, as Nigeria continues to fight COVID-19, the Lagos state health commissioner, Akin Abayomi, has revealed that 80% of the calls received on the emergency lines dedicated to coronavirus are hoax calls.
Abayomi, during a presentation at the state secretariat on Monday, April 6, said the hoax calls received by the Lagos State Emergency responders are very distracting in managing the outbreak in the state and across the nation.
While giving a breakdown of the calls, the health commissioner noted that 59% of the calls were from NCDC diverted to Lagos, while 27% were put through to the Lagos state 08000CORONA and 14% were random calls received by the commissioner himself and other officials.
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Source: Legit.ng