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Andriy Rajoelina, President of Madagascar
Madagascan President Andry Rajoelina has revealed that he has no plans to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Personally, I have not yet been vaccinated and I have no intention of getting vaccinated,” he said in a televised address on Saturday evening.
He added that he personally preferred to stick with a still scientifically proven local concoction, COVID-Organics.
The president further revealed that the southern African country is in no rush to launch massive vaccinations for its citizens.
Rajoelina said he was looking to the remedy “to protect me and my family”. However, he underlined: “The Malagasy state and I are not against the vaccine”.
He reiterated the position of the Ministry of Health earlier this week that Madagascar will observe how the deployment of vaccines is going elsewhere before making a firm decision on vaccinations.
The World Health Organization has insisted that the vaccines available are safe and has encouraged governments to deploy them as widely as possible.
Amnesty International has criticized Rajoelina’s position, claiming it represents an infringement of citizens’ right to the best possible health care.
There is no evidence that CVO “is effective in preventing Covid-19 infections,” said Tamara Leger, a researcher for the advocacy group in Madagascar.
Madagascar has recorded more than 22,000 cases of Covid and 340 deaths in the past year.
Rajoelina said the country was entering a second wave of infections, especially due to the presence of the highly transmissible South African strain of the virus.
Madagascar recorded 2,483 new infections and 45 deaths last month, the president said, insisting there was “nothing to worry about.”
With additional files from AFP
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