President, Nigerian Academy of Science, Prof. Mosto Onuoha, has warmed that citizens disregard for the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Covid-19 protocols could result in the country being hit by a second wave of the virus.
Prof Onuoha who made the observation in an interview with The Punch made reference to the second wave of the virus presently ravaging Europe.
He said: “Nigerians are behaving as if there is no more COVID-19; even in churches now, nobody is using face masks again. If you wear a face mask now, you will look odd.
“I foresee a very serious problem if we don’t become serious again. And the more important and alarming issue is that we’ve opened travels; so, people are coming in from Germany, the United Kingdom and other high-risk countries. Even if it is their own strain of the virus that is problematic, they will bring it here.
“There seems to be weariness in testing; if you go to many of the test centres, you won’t see anybody. You don’t blame the NCDC; I think they are doing their best. We don’t have to behave as if COVID-19 has gone. Truly, God has been merciful to us, the worst never happened but that doesn’t mean that we should let down guard. We should continue to obey the NCDC guidelines.
“We need to be careful; everybody has to be on guard. The National Orientation Agency, the NCDC and state governments have to drum it into people’s ears that in as much as nobody is advocating that the economy should be shut down again, it can come back to that as it is happening around the world.”
