How I survived Covid – Geingob
Geingob said he never reneged on his commitment to be first in line for vaccination, but added that his doctors advised him against taking the AstraZeneca and Sinopharm vaccines.
NAMPA
WINDHOEK
President Hage Geingob has opened up about his Covid-19 experience, saying early detection and response to the virus was the difference between life and death.
He was responding to questions by journalists on Tuesday during a visit to two Windhoek public hospitals to assess the Covid-19 response situation on the ground.
Narrating his story, Geingob said he had just come out of a lengthy Cabinet meeting on a Wednesday when he was struck by a feeling of discomfort.
His initial reaction was that he was simply fatigued.
“I was tired because I was busy. But then I was feeling a little bit of coughing, something unusual.”
He immediately called his doctor, who then assessed and tested him for the virus.
After the results were confirmed positive at around 20h00, Geingob called another private doctor he has known for over 40 years who told him to go to the hospital immediately before it was “too late”.
For the next seven days, Geingob was placed on Remdesivir medication.
“I am not used to the hospital but the point is that we were lucky [due to] early detection [and] early action,” he said.
Lead us to vaccination
His remarks come at a time when the public has been calling on the president and other leaders to lead their community to vaccination centres to encourage ordinary Namibians to get the jab and quell their fears amid an avalanche of conspiracy theories.
On when he will be vaccinated, Geingob said he never reneged on his commitment to be first in line for vaccination. But his doctors advised him against taking the AstraZeneca and Sinopharm vaccines.
“They tested me and said given my age and also my [medical] conditions like high blood pressure and so on, I can’t get this type of vaccine. I was going to be the first one. Then they said Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer [were the ideal],” he said.
The president also told journalists that he is immune to the virus - at least for the next three months, adding that he can get his first jab on 29 June.
WINDHOEK
President Hage Geingob has opened up about his Covid-19 experience, saying early detection and response to the virus was the difference between life and death.
He was responding to questions by journalists on Tuesday during a visit to two Windhoek public hospitals to assess the Covid-19 response situation on the ground.
Narrating his story, Geingob said he had just come out of a lengthy Cabinet meeting on a Wednesday when he was struck by a feeling of discomfort.
His initial reaction was that he was simply fatigued.
“I was tired because I was busy. But then I was feeling a little bit of coughing, something unusual.”
He immediately called his doctor, who then assessed and tested him for the virus.
After the results were confirmed positive at around 20h00, Geingob called another private doctor he has known for over 40 years who told him to go to the hospital immediately before it was “too late”.
For the next seven days, Geingob was placed on Remdesivir medication.
“I am not used to the hospital but the point is that we were lucky [due to] early detection [and] early action,” he said.
Lead us to vaccination
His remarks come at a time when the public has been calling on the president and other leaders to lead their community to vaccination centres to encourage ordinary Namibians to get the jab and quell their fears amid an avalanche of conspiracy theories.
On when he will be vaccinated, Geingob said he never reneged on his commitment to be first in line for vaccination. But his doctors advised him against taking the AstraZeneca and Sinopharm vaccines.
“They tested me and said given my age and also my [medical] conditions like high blood pressure and so on, I can’t get this type of vaccine. I was going to be the first one. Then they said Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer [were the ideal],” he said.
The president also told journalists that he is immune to the virus - at least for the next three months, adding that he can get his first jab on 29 June.
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