The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has met with his Guinea Bissau counterpart, Umaro Sissoco Embaló.
Buhari received his guest on Saturday afternoon at the State House in Abuja, according to his Personal Assistant on New Media, Bashir Ahmad.
Ahmad said his principal received Madagascar’s COVID Organics from Embaló.
“President Muhammadu Buhari has received the Madagascan native formulation against the COVID–19 pandemic and reiterated that he will listen to science before allowing traditional or any new medicines to be administered on Nigerians,” he tweeted.
He quoted Buhari as saying, “We have our institutions, systems, and processes in the country. Any such formulations should be sent to them for verification. I will not put it to use without the endorsement of our institutions.”
The PUNCH reports that the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, had said his principal ordered the airlifting of a consignment of Madagascar’s COVID Organics from Guinea Bissau.
“Madagascar has made allocations to various countries and sent them to Guinea Bissau. We‘re supposed to make arrangements to freight Nigeria’s allocation from Guinea Bissau; it‘ll be subjected to the standard validation process for pharmaceuticals.
“Mr President has given instructions for the airlifting of Nigeria’s allocation of the Madagascar COVID-19 Syrup; also given clear instructions that it must be subjected to the standard validation process for pharmaceuticals; there will be no exceptions for this,” Mustapha, who is also the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, had said.
Some African countries have taken delivery of consignments of the Malagasy potion touted to cure coronavirus.
Madagascar said the drink is derived from artemisia annun, a plant with proven anti-malarial properties, and other indigenous herbs.
Credit: Punch