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Africa’s COVID-19 variant Omicron a blessing – Scientist
He, however, said that the weakened variant of COVID-19 virus coming out of Africa could mean the end of the pandemic, saying such could be the best Christmas gift ever from Africa to the world, which has left Africa largely unvaccinated
The new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, just discovered in southern Africa may be a blessing rather than threat to the world after all.
A Nigerian research scientist, Dr Jonathan Obaje, based in Singapore, says based on preliminary clinical data coming from South Africa on the “Omicron” variant of the COVID-19 virus, African innate immunities may have already weakened COVID-19 virus significantly.
Obaje, a former Vice President of Nigeria in Diaspora, Singapore, said this on Tuesday in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He quoted various media reports across South Africa, saying hospitals across the country reported that symptoms of “Omicron”, the new COVID strain, are very mild and no record of death associated with it so far.
“Around 90 per cent of all new infections in Johannesburg region are now caused by Omicron, so far, COVID death rate and even hospital admissions appear not to be increasing significantly.
“Some medical and scientific researchers worldwide are currently talking about this and are cautiously optimistic that if Omicron turns out to be less-lethal, but more contagious and dominant than the Delta variant, the new mutation may actually be a blessing in the sky.
“This is exciting news; African innate immunity may have weakened COVID-19 virus. The world should be grateful to the African gene for ending COVID-19 pandemic.
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“The fact that Africa has had least COVID-19 vaccination, yet recorded lowest fatalities, with many COVID-19 infections but high recovery records, points science to take a closer look of the African phenomenon”.
He noted that since 2019, Africans innate immunity may have dealt with COVID-19 virus silently, with 32 mutations of the spike proteins, without the watchful eyes of the world.
He, however, said that the weakened variant of COVID-19 virus coming out of Africa could mean the end of the pandemic, saying such could be the best Christmas gift ever from Africa to the world, which has left Africa largely unvaccinated.
Obaje is the founder and inventor of most of Urah technologies such as the Proprietary Obalin®Transdermal drug delivery System and the Biosurfactant process technology. He holds technology patents in the US, Japan and Singapore, and has many research publications. Dr Obaje has worked in various research positions in Universities and Institutes in Nigeria, England, Malaysia and Singapore. He has received a number of International Academic Awards, among which are the American Oil Chemists’ Society Honoured Student Award (2000) and the Lever Brothers Scholarship Award for Outstanding Graduate Student Research in Surfactants and Detergents (1999). Dr Obaje is a Chartered Scientist & Chartered Chemist (UK) and a professional member of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
