Infodemic — Fake meds in Nigeria, ozone necklaces in Ukraine and online Covid-19 survivor groups
Welcome. We are tracking how disinformation is shaping the world during the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, from Nigeria to Ukraine, Coda’s Isobel Cockerell brings you the latest narratives — both real and fake — that have grabbed our attention and deserve yours.
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In Nigeria, experts are concerned that the sale of fake pharmaceuticals is on the rise, as the country struggles to keep up with demand for imported pharmaceuticals and PPE. Nigeria has now been flooded with dodgy protective gear and pseudoscientific treatments, aimed at panicked and desperate buyers. “There is indiscriminate hawking of medicines in public places and the open markets, motor parks, buses and along the streets,” Dr. Kingsley Chiedu Amibo, chairman of the National Association of Pharmacists told the Nigeria Guardian this week.
Former president of Ukraine, Leonid Kravchuk, has been seen wearing a personal “ozone” necklace, which he claims is protecting him from Covid-19. Kravchuk did not specify what the device was — just that it was “made by the Americans.” In an interview with the online newspaper Ukrayinska Pravda, he said, “It runs on battery power, the ozone is charged, the air is constantly coming out and killing germs. I’m sitting here, and the ozone has killed all the germs around us — at least I hope so.” There is absolutely no evidence to support his claims. I’ve written about air purifier necklaces before: they are useless against Covid-19. The World Health Organization also classifies ozone as a toxic substance.
The government of Turkey is suppressing the nation’s coronavirus infection numbers, according to doctors at the Turkish Medical Association, who have described the pandemic as “out of control.” The head of the association estimated that the health ministry’s official countrywide count of about 1,500 daily cases is closer to being the number in Ankara alone, where Covid-19 wards are full. The president of the group has also called for the health minister’s resignation in an interview on Ahval News TV.