Third Killer Wave of Covid-19 Might Hit SA If the Vaccine Is Delayed
- South Africa may face a third wave of Covid-19 if the vaccine rollout is delayed
- Experts have warned that if a third deadly wave of Covid-19 sweeps South Africa it may be too late to administer the vaccine to those who are high-risk
- The government plans on vaccinated two-thirds of the population before the end of 2021
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Experts have warned the if the Covid-19 vaccine does not make to South Africa in time, a third and possibly deadlier wave of the virus might ravage the country.
Shabir Madhi, a vaccinologist, warned that if a third wave did hit, it would be too late to administer the vaccine to high-risk groups if there is a delay.
A number of experts who have been side-lined, including Glenda Gray, a South African Medical Research Council president professor, said that there was no clear date when the vaccines programme will be rolled out.
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Health minister Zweli Mkhize said that the vaccine rollout was still on track and the first doses from India will arrive in South Africa in January according to Times Live.
The issue of paying for the vaccines is also unclear, President Cyril Ramaphosa said that the government would be the primary funder of the vaccine and it may need to go cap in hand to ask for money.
National Treasury director-general Dondo Mogajane even suggested that a tax increase might be implemented to pay for the vaccine.
Mkhize told South Africa in early January that the government hoped to vaccinate two-thirds of the population in 2021, however, exact details on the deployment of the vaccine remain sketchy.
Earlier, Briefly.co.za reported that ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba has encouraged President Cyril Ramaphosa to trim the size of his Cabinet before raising taxes. The former Johannesburg mayor claimed that it is now official that Mzansi government wants to increase tax to fund the procurement and rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine.
Mashaba shared that this is the perfect time for Ramaphosa to "cut the fat". The politician wants Ramaphosa to get rid of some of his 62 ministers and deputy ministers in order to save millions of rand from their salaries.
"The #CutTheFat Campaign calls on all South Africans to draw a line in the sand and say ‘this far and no further’ to a government that continues to spend and live expensively while South Africans are suffering," said Mashaba in a statement."
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Source: Briefly News
