Madagascar Covid Organics: Gambians believe it’s Time to Show Solidarity

Most Gambians have applauded Madagascar for sharing its discovered Covid Organics across the continent to treat coronavirus, stating that it’s time they show solidarity with African scientists.

The presidency of The Gambia has announced accepting a consignment from the Madagascar’s president on Monday, as part of a gift to the regional bloc, ECOWAS. The medicine was since then said to be handed to the ministry of health for treatment of patients.

However, apart from Africa, the medicine is not popular in other areas as the World Health Organization (WHO) warned against any treatment for the coronavirus that did not undertake clinical tests.

But to many Gambians, the organics medicine was simply rejected because it was discovered in Africa – a comment further strengthened by Madagascar president recently.

“It’s a fellow African country offering a cure and I think they’ve done their best. It’s up to us to support ourselves, as a Gambian I think it’s something worth recommending,”Alhasan Drammeh said in The Chronicle’s Vox Pop…

He argued that many herbs have been taken from Africa and taken to the west for processing only to be imported again with a heavy cost on African governments.

“I think it’s a great plausible step because so far Africa has been left behind when it comes to scientific experiment and also when it comes to using its own materials and processing it into something useful especially health wise.”

“Madagascar being an African country, is Africa offering a cure for corona. Something that the West has been struggling to find a cure for, I think what’s bordering them is that a cure has come from Africa because they believed Africans cannot do anything meaningful,” says Alhasan.

He hailed the government for accepting the medicine, stating that there’s no reason it can’t be used in the country.

“This pandemic has affected Europe more than it has affected Africa, so Africa should take the opportunity and take center stage of international development. This is a time Africa should also rise to make their voices heard. Even if it’s not hundred percent effective, why not give it a try?”

Baba Ceesay, Country Coordinator Global Youth Parliament Gambia Chapter described Madagascar’s effort as a breakthrough and urged that the entire world should embrace it.

“If you see the side effect of the virus, it affects the developing countries more and Gambia is among the developing countries. Per capital income is very low, so if you lock down the people, they don’t have money, businesses going down would affect us.

“So, if we have a medicine that can ease up to open our borders, and our economy again, why not?” he said.

Baba believes that if Madagascar can make this breakthrough, every African country should show solidarity, celebrate and be proud of it.

“Whether the west would accept it or not, the west has not been accepting many things from Africa but that is because African themselves don’t believe in themselves. Africa has to start believing in themselves. Africa has to start working for each other.”

Essa Janko says to accept the medicine depends on whether Africans trust each to come up with something to tackle a world pandemic.

“Because when you look at the West, most of the time they wouldn’t value whatever Africans produce. The West kind of look at us as people incapable of coming up with initiatives or production that can be of great use without them passing it through their own system to see whether it fits certain criteria that they set.”

“I think African countries in the solidarity of Pan Africanism need to give Madagascar the benefit of the doubt. The countries that are accepting it of course know the risk involved. Whatever you’re doing, you evaluate it and know the risk involved and then balance the thing before you arrive at a decision,” says Essa.

However, he urged The Gambia to scrutinize the medicine using its experts to ascertain its effectiveness. He said the scrutiny should also include the people

For Amadou Ceesay, a student of the University of The Gambia says he’s in support of an African step to address African problems.

“My only concerns are that it needs to be standardized to meet the required internationally accepted ways without the dictation of WHO. I believe we should do it at our own pace and as we desire. But we need to do a lot of trials to prove that it’s effective.”

Other African countries that have been supplied include Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Congo, DR Congo and Tanzania.