EFF STATEMENT ON THE PROCUREMENT OF COVID-19 VACCINE

Monday, 18 January 2021

The EFF notes the briefing by Minister of Health regarding the Covid-19 Vaccination roll out plan to the Parliarnent Portfolio Cornrnittee on Health. The briefing was consistent with what the National Department of Health has been cornrnunicating over the past few weeks. Noteworthy, the NDoH has overtly stated that although the vaccine will be rolled out frorn February 2021, it will not be available in the immediate to everyone. This so called "prioritization systern" outlines three different phases on how and to whom the vaccination will be made available.

This roll out strategy, in the rnost obvious, is admittance on the part of the President and the executive that they have collectively failed to make the vaccine available to all citizens and on tirne. This is due to the financial incapacity and rnismanagement on the part of the current governrnent. A responsible government ought to have known about vaccine developments and financially planned, or even pre-ordered the vaccines.

Above all, the lousy "prioritisation systern" is just a cover for administrative incornpetence. The government has not prioritised anyone except its corrupt cronies. Public resources which could have been used to secure vaccines on time and for all our people, have been embezzled in different forrns of corrupt activities within and outside the health system, chief amongst which relate to the procurement of PPEs. To this end, the uncontainable thirst to steal public resources has resulted in thousands of avoidable deaths, and will now ascertain to keep the vaccine a distant dream for our people. This will unavoidably lead to more avoidable suffering, death and economic decline.

Through these trying and very difficult times for farnilies who have lost their loved ones, survivors of covid-19 and those who are currently battling the virus, it has become apparent that this is the time for the governrnent to be most transparent in their dealings than they were over the past few months.

Section 32 (Access to Information), which is one of our most valued Bill of Rights in our Constitution states that everyone has the right to access any inforrnation held by the State. Minister Zwelini Mkhize has overridden this obligation by first refusing to disclose demographics of Covid-19 infections and deaths inclusive of race as requested by the EFF.

Minister Zwelini Mkhize once again has refused to divulge necessary information requested by the EFF and other members of the Portfolio Committee on Health relating to the procurement of vaccines to fight Covid-19. He responded by stating that the reason for his refusal to divulge information was driven by the fact that the NDoH signed non¬disclosure forms.

The EFF calls on the Minister of Health to take the country into confidence with immediate effect and abide by the Constitution by stating which vaccine manufacturers government met with and the contents of those meetings. We demand to know if there has been money given to any manufacturer, for what quantities and for how much. In essence, the Minister must divulge all information pertaining to the procurement agreements made with vaccine manufacturers — we demand absolute transparency.

A global pandemic does not eradicate the responsibility of the President and any of the members of the executive to uphold the Constitution. To this effect, the Minister is obligated to ensure that the information being requested by the EFF is made available imrnediately. This unjustifiable secrecy is a recipe for more corruption and the mismanagement of public funds far larger than any corruption scandal over the last century.

Statement issued by the EFF, 18 January 2021