Members of the AUN Community must get vaccinated and put on a mask because the virus is not going away anytime soon. This assertion has a scientific foundation. In a recent article in Premium Times, AUN virologist and Assistant Professor of Microbiology, Professor Malachy Ifeanyi Okeke warned against 'the illusion" that Covid-19 may be controlled.
"The virus is here to say", he wrote.
The Norway-trained professor of molecular genetics advanced five postulations to back his affirmation, in a thoroughly researched and brilliantly captured article which has generated robust conversations in the comments columns of the newspaper.
Professor Okeke of the AUN NES program, challenged the authenticity of the herd immunity hypothesis which he contends was not supported by the data on which the vaccines were granted temporary authorization. The Oxford dictionary defines herd immunity as "resistance to the spread of an infectious disease within a population that is based on pre-existing immunity of a high proportion of individuals as a result of previous infection or vaccination". This definition comes with a caveat: "The level of vaccination needed to achieve herd immunity varies by disease".
Professor Okeke concurs, adding that "while the vaccines are highly effective against serious illnesses, they are not so effective in preventing virus transmission" and "that is why vaccinated individuals can get re-infected and transmit the virus to susceptible individuals within the population".
Please use the attached link to read more about this interesting debate: