Obong of Calabar, royal household receive COVID-19 Vaccine

The Obong of Calabar, His Eminence, Edidem Ekpo Okon Otu Abasi the V and members of his traditional rulers’ council yesterday received their first doses of the AstraZeneca’s vaccine while calling on as their followers to support the Government in the fight against Covid-19.

The first-class traditional ruler who made the call during a sensitisation and advocacy visit by the Cross River State health team to his palace stated that, as influential figures in the society, the need to epose confidence in the minds of the people has become insurmountable, hence the choice to be vaccinated publicly.

He noted that with the introduction of the vaccine to the country and its distribution to states, there is hope for the Eradication of the deadly Coronavirus which has affected all sectors of life, he attributed the low incidences recorded in the state to the commitment of the health team to raise awareness across different Communities.

He, therefore, charged his supporters and followers to avail themselves the opportunity of being vaccinated while also maintaining laid down protocols and lifestyle as recommended by world health regulatory bodies.

Speaking earlier, the Director-General of the Cross River State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Janet Ekpenyong thanked the Obong of Calabar and his council of chiefs for supporting Government programs through the mobilization of their subjects across various Communities.

Dr Ekpenyong however urged the traditional rulers to dispel rumours being peddled across the social media space on the inefficacy of the vaccine with fallacious claims, stating that over 400 million people globally and over 25,000 people in Cross River have been vaccinated with no death recorded or severe adverse events following immunization.

On her part, the representative of the World Health Organization, Cross River State, Mrs Chisom Emeka applauded the state for the collaboration between the political class and the traditional class, disclosing that with such partnership, there would be a reasonable improvement in the delivery of health services to citizens.