The private sector-led Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID) yesterday shed more light on its squabble with the BUA Group, saying the company cannot lay claims to the acquisition of vaccines for Nigeria as presently no private organisation is authorised to do so globally.
CACOVID said although the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is yet to approve any of the brands of vaccines for the country, there are steps to be followed in procuring the vaccines.
The Administrator, CACOVID, and Managing Director of the Aliko Dangote Foundation, Ms. Zouera Youssofou, spoke during an interview on ARISE NEWS Channel, the broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspapers, against the backdrop of Monday dispute between the BUA Group and CACOVID over claims by the former that it had purchased one million doses of COVID-19 vaccine for Nigeria.
BUA, in a statement, had said that it had paid for one million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine for Nigeria through the Afreximbank Vaccine programme in partnership with CACOVID.
The company, which said the vaccines would be distributed at no cost to Nigerians, added that the one million doses would be delivered next week. It pledged to buy an additional five million.
However, CACOVID in a statement Monday night, disowned BUA’s claim, saying the Chairman/Founder of the group, Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, must have been misquoted.
“CACOVID leadership agreed to contribute $100 million to procure vaccines for Nigeria, these one million doses from Afreximbank worth $3.45 million, being the very first tranche. CACOVID will purchase vaccines through other credible and subsidised mechanisms such as COVAX.
The vaccines will be delivered to Nigeria and distributed through the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA).
“CACOVID would like the Nigerian public to understand that vaccine purchase is only possible through the Federal Government of Nigeria, and that no individual or company can purchase vaccines directly from any legitimate and recognised manufacturer,” it had said.
In a riposte, BUA disputed CACOVID’s claim, saying that it offered to pay for the vaccine when no other member of the coalition was forthcoming with a donation.