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COVID-19: Nigerian govt begs Tesla for ventilators as virus infections surge
The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Ministry of Finace is seeking help from Tesla CEO and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk in the area of importing ventilators to fight the spread of COVID-19.
The Ministry of Finance made the plea on Thursday after the tech guru took to his Twitter page, disclosing that his company is ready to provide free FDA-approved ventilators to countries in need.
In the post on the social media platform, Elon Musk noted that the ventilators would be shipped to countries within its delivery region and must be needed immediately and not for storing in warehouses.
His tweet read: “We have extra FDA-approved ventilators; we will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions, device and shipping costs free.
“Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients and not stored in a warehouse.”
READ ALSO: COVID-19: Osinbajo, governors hold video conference on more palliatives
Hours later, the official handle of the Nigerian ministry of finance quickly responded, pleading for 100-500 ventilators from the tech billionaire to fight the dreaded COVID-19 virus.
The post by the Ministry of Finance reads: “Dear Elon Musk, Tesla, the federal government of Nigeria needs the support of 100-500 ventilators to assist with COVID-19 cases in Nigeria.”
This development comes after the Presidency on Wednesday implored Nigerians to trust information coming from scientists and medical specialists on issues concerning viral diseases, instead of listening to Professors of Literary writings.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, stated this while reacting to comments made by Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, on the legal basis of a 14-day movement restriction ordered by President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday.
The presidential aide, in a statement, advised Soyinka to write a play on the coronavirus pandemic, after this emergency is over, rather than attacking measures put in place to tackle the spread of the deadly disease.
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