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Director of the West African Center for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens, Professor Gordon Akanzuwine Awandare has asked persons questioning the science behind the covid-19 vaccines to desist from their action.

He believes that this action is deteriorating the vaccine hesitancy situation in the country hence, must stop.

Prof Awandare said on the Key Points on TV3/3FM Saturday, December 18 with host Dzifa Bampoh that credible data across the world show that the vaccines save lives, reduce disease severity, reduce hospitalization and also reduce even the percentage of symptomatic infections and in some cases also reduce deaths.

“Let us make the legal case. But to then move ahead and start to question the science around the vaccines and ask questions about whether the vaccines actually work and whether it is even necessary, I think that is very dangerous because I thought we had moved past this".

“All the credible data across the world show that the vaccine saves lives, reduces the disease severity, it reduces hospitalization, it reduces even the percentage of the symptomatic infections and in some cases some of the vaccines actually reduce deaths.

“So there is clearly a positive impact from these vaccines. If you are going to make an argument about the legalities of it let's keep it but lest not try to worsen our already bad vaccine hesitancy by raising questions about the vaccines.”

Following the mandatory vaccination in Ghana, some persons have questioned the government’s decision to force people to accept the vaccine especially when they believe that there was no law backing the government’s directive.

For instance, a private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu, asked the government to get an Executive Instrument (E.I) to back the decision.

Mr Kpebu expressed shock that the government commenced enforcement of the mandatory vaccination when there was no E.I to support the directive.

“I am surprised that the government is not putting in place the EI. It doesn’t take much to put out such an EI,” he said on the Key Points on TV3/3FM Saturday, December 18.

As part of measures to control the spread of the coronavirus in the country, the government through the Ghana Health Service (GHS) introduced a number of measures at the Kotoka International Airport.

Among the measures, “Airlines who board passengers without proof of payment for the COVID-19 test and would/could not pay for the test in Ghana will be fined US$3500 per passenger.”

Also, “non-Ghanaian passengers may be refused entry and be returned to the point of embarkation at a cost to the Airline."
The month of December has been declared by the GHS had as the vaccination month.