The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 has said picking up the Madagascar herbal cure was not Nigeria’s priority at the moment.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday ordered the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to go for the drug, which was deposited for West Africa in Guinea Bissau.
Reacting to questions on Thursday as to why Nigeria was not empowering its own traditional medicine industry to produce a cure, Boss Mustapha, Chairman of the task force, said Nigeria didn’t beg for the remedy from Madagascar.
He insisted that is was donated and Nigeria accepted the donation in good faith. 
Mustapha also denied allegations that the Nigerian Government had abandoned local inventors.
He said, “Nigeria did not ask for the Madagascar solution, the Madagascar Government decided to airlift quantities meant for African countries. That of West Africa was taken to Guinea Bissau, so all the members of ECOWAS have their commodities offloaded in Guinea Bissau and that was the one I referred to that we were making arrangements to evacuate.
“But the impression out there is as if we abandoned homegrown solution and were looking for Madagascar solution. We didn’t ask for it, but it was taken in the spirit of African brotherly love to Guinea Bissau and we’ve asked our ambassador there to establish the location, the quantity and he has done that.
“We have to make arrangements for its freighting out of Guinea Bissau, but there are no flights. So there so many things we have to consider.” 
