The President, Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), Josiah Biobelemoye, has appealed to his members nationwide to put aside all grievances and come out en masse to get the much needed protection against coronavirus, by getting vaccinated. Biobelemoye who doubles as President, Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), made the appeal yesterday in Abuja, while receiving his first jab of the Astra- Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
He said members of the union, who had always been discriminated against as health workers, especially when it comes to welfare and other benefits, were angry that they were suddenly recognised as health and frontline workers when the issue of vaccination against a virus/ disease surfaced. While appealing to the health workers to consider their safety first before any existing acrimony or the various conspiracy theories making rounds in the country and African region, he gave assurances that the vaccine was safe, adding that he felt no sign of side effects after taking the jab.
He said: “I have just taken my jab of the Astra- Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine and I feel good. I have come to take this to tell all health workers, especially members of JOHESU, that it is not harmful to anybody. “I know their area of grievances that from the onset of COVID-19, majority of my members were discriminated against that they are not health workers and today vaccines came and they said we are health workers. “They are saying when it comes to butter and bread, naira and kobo, we are discriminated against,but the bottom line is even if we have to agitate we need to be alive so am calling on everybody, I have sent advisories, I have been talking to our people and I think the anger is being doused,” he said.
