— take the vaccine now or risk having to pay later, says VP Jagdeo

WITH over one billion persons already vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, Vice- President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo is insisting that the injections are no longer experimental, but have already demonstrated efficacy on a global scale.
In urging Guyanese to get immunised, Jagdeo pointed to the fact that some countries are already moving to have their citizens stand the cost of becoming vaccinated. “At some stage, and in some countries, they are already saying that after a particular date, people would have to start paying for the vaccines; its free up to [a] certain date,” Jagdeo told a press conference on Friday.
The Vice-President reminded citizens that already, the Government of Guyana is spending a significant amount of money to ensure that each of the 500,000 Guyanese adults has access to the life-saving vaccines; that too, free of cost. “Now it costs us nearly 10,000 to administer the two doses… [right now] it is for free, and people should make use for it,” Jagdeo noted.
He said that so far, Guyana’s vaccination efforts have been better than those of many other countries, with 178,000 persons receiving their first jabs, and close to 50,000 persons being fully vaccinated.

NO LOCKDOWN

Responding to concerns relating to the implementation of stricter curfews and lockdown measures, the Vice-President said that there is no “empirical evidence” to suggest that shifting curfew hours would result in a decrease in the number of positive cases being recorded.
“We had to have a nuanced approach, unlike other countries, which have totally shut down… take for example Trinidad, which has been in a perpetual state of lockdown for the last year, and it did not help really,” Jagdeo reasoned.
He also emphasised the need for Guyanese to follow the requisite precautionary measures to safeguard themselves and their families against the deadly virus. “People, often during the course of the day, engage in economic activities and other activities without wearing a mask or observing any protocol,” Jagdeo posited.
Asked specifically whether the government has been examining the possibility of a nationwide lockdown, Jagdeo responded in the negative. “I am not aware there is any such consideration,” he said, adding, “But we will keep a close eye on the situation.”

MORE VACCINES

The Vice-President said that even though lockdowns are not likely at this time, the government will continue to invest in expanding its vaccination programme, recognising it to be the only way out of the pandemic.
“If we are all vaccinated, then we can open up the country and we don’t have to wear masks; we can go about our business,” Jagdeo noted.
To this end, the government, he said, is moving to purchase an addition 250,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccines.
Questioned further about the purchase, Jagdeo said that there has been a slight increase in the cost to ship the vaccines from a company in the United Arab Emirates to Guyana, owing to the strict transportation protocols. However, Guyana is exploring opportunities to purchase from a source in Europe. “That may be slightly cheaper,” the Vice-President hoped.
Asked whether Guyana will be looking to purchase the single-dose vaccines, Jagdeo said that many of those are being heavily accumulated by developed countries, leaving very limited opportunities for poor and developing countries to have access to such vaccines.

The Member of Parliament indicated, however, that Guyana will be on the lookout to buy vaccines that are being developed for children.
In addition to preventative measures, Jagdeo said that government has intensified efforts to strengthen capacity and improve the infrastructure needed to fight the more than one-year-old pandemic. Jagdeo told reporters that in addition to providing personnel training and securing vaccines, the government has also ensured an adequate supply of oxygen that has become critical for the growing number of patients being admitted to the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit.
Jagdeo also utilised the forum to warn Guyanese against believing the myriad of misinformation being peddled about the vaccine. The Vice-President expressed disgust over the fact that the vaccination efforts are being tainted by political play, as against being promoted by all leaders as a national effort to save lives and put an end to a deadly virus that has taken more than 300 lives already.
As it is, Guyana is one of the very few countries that has been able to successfully acquire enough vaccines to immunise its entire adult population.