Rather than centring solely on the medical process, the case has unfolded as a test of public confidence in primary healthcare delivery and government response to vaccine-related fears.
The deaths of nine-month-old identical twins, Testimony and Timothy Alozie, have triggered official scrutiny of routine immunisation procedures in Lagos State, following public outcry sparked by their father’s social media posts.
Rather than centring solely on the medical process, the case has unfolded as a test of public confidence in primary healthcare delivery and government response to vaccine-related fears.
The Lagos State government has now ordered a postmortem examination to determine the cause of death, as investigations by both the police and state health authorities continue.
The incident gained widespread attention after the twins’ father, Samuel Alozie, popularly known as Promise Samuel on TikTok, posted videos showing the lifeless bodies of his children in separate body bags.
In the videos, he recounted how the twins reportedly died less than 24 hours after receiving routine immunisation at a primary health care centre.
In a follow-up video on Thursday, Alozie said he took his sons for vaccination on the morning of December 24, 2025, and noticed immediate changes in their condition.
"They could not eat, they could not play, they could not even disturb as they used to. They were just weak,” he said.
According to him, a nurse at the facility advised the parents to administer paracetamol if the babies developed a fever. Alozie said the advice was followed, alongside bathing the children in cold water, but their condition deteriorated.
“It happened that the immunisation was conducted on the 24th of December in the morning, and on the morning of 25th December, they died. On the 24th, after the injection, they were very weak, and I gave them paracetamol because the nurse said that if the temperature continued, I should give them paracetamol."
"My wife bathed them in cold water. They died on the 25th. The two of them died at the same time. The drug weakened them to the extent that they couldn’t talk, they couldn’t eat, they couldn’t play as usual,” he said.
Struggling to come to terms with the loss, Alozie questioned the explanation reportedly offered at the health centre.
"I’m just confused. How can I lose two children, identical twins that I have suffered so much for? Just nine months, they were not sick. Just because I decided to fulfil the righteousness of taking them for immunisation,” he said.
"The nurse is talking about bacteria, food bacteria. She said that it is food bacteria that killed my children. How can food bacteria kill a child? Food that I’ve been giving them from one month to nine months did not kill them,” he added.
Responding to the incident, a Lagos State official said authorities were proceeding with caution while awaiting medical findings.
"We sympathise with them and we understand the grief these parents will be going through, but we would like for the right things to be done and the right decisions to be taken. It is being investigated by the police and we are also doing our investigation as a state, and we are expecting the postmortem findings."
"This particular vaccine has been given to many children before and after these kids, and nothing like this has been recorded,” he said.
The outcome of the postmortem is expected to play a key role in addressing public concerns and clarifying the circumstances surrounding the twins’ deaths.