Amidst the second wave of the dreadful coronavirus, the management of the University of Jos, UNIJOS, has approved the immediate sale of what it termed “a home made herbal tea” for the prevention of the viral infection.

An internal memo sighted by Peoples Gazette and signed by the institution’s registrar, Monday Danjem, on January 11, directed that the beverage — produced by UNIJOS’ Africa Centre of Excellence in Phytomedicine be sold at an affordable price.

The university’s senate approved for the herbal tea to be widely advertised within its campuses to drive patronage, the memo said, noting that the decision was taken after extensive deliberations at the fourth Special Meeting for the 2019/2020 academic session held on January 11.

The efficacy of the herbal tea has yet to be certified by Nigeria’s regulatory body for food and drug administration, NAFDAC, Peoples Gazette learnt Friday.

The Gazette could not immediately verify if the potential antidote has been subjected to clinical trials.

Fears of further escalation of already heightening COVID-19 infections have greeted the federal government’s waiver for the resumption of tertiary institutions across the country next Monday.

More than 1,000 fatalities have been recorded from the surging virus, which has so far infected over 100,000 Nigerians, records by the country’s public health agency (NCDC) have shown.