Did COVID-19 vaccine knock down a woman in Kaduna as claimed by Bishop Oyedepo?

 On April 17, David Oyedepo, presiding bishop of Living Faith Church Worldwide, said he won’t take the COVID-19 vaccine and also asked his followers not to take it.

While delivering a sermon in his church, he told the congregation that a certain woman went down after taking the vaccine injection in Kaduna.

“No apologies. There is a big, big bird in our land, saying don’t take it, they are deceivers. Let me see someone who will come and inject me. You can’t come to my house and want to give me injection,” Oyedepo had said.

“One woman just got down after that injection in Kaduna. What kind of life? Are human beings now turned to guinea pigs?”

Oyedepo, who oversees one of the largest congregations in the continent, has made some controversial claims and comments about the coronavirus pandemic in the past.

However, the cleric did not clarify what he meant when he said the woman “got down” after taking the vaccine. This has caused different interpretations on what actually could have transpired. Was it an adverse reaction? TheCable presents what we know so far about the incident and COVID-19 vaccination in Nigeria at present. 

WHAT HAPPENED IN KADUNA?

A viral video had surfaced on social media showing a woman identified as Hanatu Tanko, who claimed to be a health worker, saying she bled through her nose and mouth after she received the COVID-19 vaccine on March 25 in the state.

“I was vomiting blood through my nostrils and mouth. I was rushed to Gwamna Awan Hospital, where I was given medication to subside the pain,” she said. 

“We were told in our place of work that if we don’t take the vaccine, we would not be paid. Since I am the breadwinner of my family and my mother is sick, I had to take the vaccine, so that I will be paid.”

Patrick Echobu, chief medical doctor (CMD) of Ashmed Specialist Hospital, Kaduna, where Tanko was reported to have taken the vaccine, denied that she took the jab at the centre. 

He said the hospital admitted Tanko six days after she had been vaccinated at a different location. The CMD pointed out that her vomit was a result of underlying chronic illnesses like hypertension, upper respiratory tract infection, but the hospital was able to control the bleeding.

“We received her as a patient after she had vaccination six days prior to presentation in this hospital and unknown to us, she granted somebody an audience which she posted on the media,” Echobu said. 

The CMD added that the epidemiology team from the health ministry had visited Tanko to check her health condition. 

SORTING FACTS FROM FICTION

Nigeria commenced nationwide vaccination of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on March 5 after receiving 3.9 million doses courtesy of the UN-led COVAX facility. 

As of April 28, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) stated that 1,191,563 Nigerians have been vaccinated so far. About 61,566 residents have been vaccinated in Kaduna. 

During a media parley earlier in the month, Faisal Shuaib, chief executive officer of NPHCDA, said there have been no recorded cases of fatalities after administration of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in the country, but there have been reactions. 

He noted that a total of 8,439 mild adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) have been reported.

Shuaib said some of the reactions range from pain at the injection site, body aches, headache or fever lasting for a day or two, but the side effects are short-term.

“There has been no death from administration of the vaccine. We have also not diagnosed any case of blood clots related to the administration of the vaccines.” Shuaib said.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) assured Nigerians of the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine being administered in the country.

However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has also backed the continued use of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) also declared the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safe and effective.

VERDICT: While Oyedepo’s claim about Hanatu Tanko getting down after taking the vaccine may seem true, medical experts have said her condition is a result of a chronic underlying health condition and not the COVID-19 vaccine.