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Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS) has debunked fake HIV statistics in Abuja contained in a purported report posted by a Twitter influencer with the username FirstDoctor.
The Twitter user and CEO of Telemed Online Clinic had claimed in a post on his page on Friday, July 28, 2023, that the Abuja Chapter of the Red Cross reportedly conducted HIV tests for 199 people in the nation's capital last week.
According to his claim, out of the 197 people tested, 119 returned positive results, of which 60% were male. He went on to caution against engaging in unprotected sex.
"So last week, the Red Cross reportedly ran HIV tests for 197 people in Abuja, Nigeria. 119 of them were positive and 60% of the positive tests were male. If you can't control yourself, use condoms. Just stop playing games with your life," FirstDoctor tweeted.
The alarming prevalent rate in his post had raised the curiosity of many people on the microblogging site, and they were quick to raise questions about the authenticity of the purported report.
Though he refused to name any reliable source of the report he quoted, the Twitter doctor defended his post in the comment section, where he also made insulting remarks against some commenters.
Reacting to the controversial post, the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), asked the NRCS to confirm the veracity of the claim.
"@nrcs_ng This information is passing round. Can you confirm when and where this outreach occurred with 60% prevalent rate?," NACA quote tweeted FirstDoctor's post on Saturday.
Meanwhile, in its response, the NRCS confirmed that no tests were conducted by its Abuja FCT branch, as alleged in the viral post, adding that it's unethical for any organisation to disclose the status of patients/clients.
It said, "@NACA, thanks for bringing this to our notice. We have contacted our Abuja FCT branch and confirmed that such activity was never conducted. It's unethical for any organization to disclose the status of their clients/patients...
"The Nigerian Red Cross Society remains committed to providing quality and free humanitarian services to affected population wherever they may be found based on our humanitarian mandate and 7 fundamental principles. But, in this case, this story is false. Thank you all."