Gullible believe irresponsible Covid claims
TWO posts are doing their rounds on social media, which I deem to be irresponsible and dangerous.
It’s abuse of free speech and one of the biggest exponents of this was Donald Trump.
He used Facebook to make his supporters believe that the vote was stolen from him. Trump was subsequently banned from Facebook.
The first one is about the origin of the virus. In a long winding, intricate web of conspiracy theory, some faceless genius unravels an elaborate plot by the pharmaceutical giants GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer, including German and French companies, and the billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates of Microsoft and Dr Fauci, an American physician-scientist and immunologist, of unleashing the virus to profit from it.
The post claims that the virus was started in the Chinese biological laboratory, owned by GlaxoSmithKline, which manufactures the Pfizer vaccine.
It claims that the Wuhan Biological Laboratory is funded by Dr Fauci and Gates is a shareholder of Pfizer.
The virus brought the world to a standstill.
The world economy plunged into turmoil and nearly 3 million people died. It’s a serious accusation.
If Gates was involved, would the Gates Foundation have poured $680 million (R9.71 billion) to fight the pandemic?
In addition, the foundation has provided a $300m loan to make vaccines that cost $3 each. Implicating Gates does not make sense.
None of the theories, conjectures and assumptions have been verified. Yet the post urges followers to copy it and share it. And the gullible among us believe every word on social media, as if it is the gospel truth.
The second is by Prophetess Mattie Nottage from Nassau in the Bahamas. She urges her congregation and followers on YouTube not to take the Covid-19 vaccine.
Apparently, she spoke to God and asked him why we should put this vaccine, which has not been proven to be effective, into her body.
Each time she bellows out a profanity against the vaccine, the audience applauds her.
No vaccine, she claims, has been tested and proved to be safe for humans. That is an irresponsible statement.
The cure for the virus is God Almighty and prayer.
All vaccines have side effects. It is shown on the leaflet that comes with the medicine.
It is true that there has been controversy over the AstraZeneca vaccine in Europe.
After extensive testing and debate over the effectiveness of the vaccine, scientists have declared that the benefits of the vaccine far outweigh the risks posed by it. In fact, only a few cases of rare blood clotting have been detected.
So should we all not take the vaccine and rely solely on prayer to keep us safe?
There is a simple way to put this question to rest.
All Nottage has to do to dispel any doubts, is to follow her words with actions. She should show us she has the holy spirit in her and by laying her hands on the infected the virus will vanish.
It’s an opportunity of a lifetime to show the world that prayers can drive out the virus.
Show the world that, without taking the vaccine and without face masks and hand sanitisers, you can mix freely in a crowd and not become infected.
And show us that even though you have been in close contact with someone who has the virus, you have not become a victim.
It’s that simple.
If prayer can keep the virus out, the pharmaceutical companies will suffer a massive loss and even go out of business.
There are about 10 important, life-saving vaccines in the world that prevent infectious diseases, like measles, smallpox and polio.
Can you imagine what would happen to humanity if there were no vaccines against these contagious diseases? The pastors would have no congregation to fund their luxurious lifestyle.
It’s more than a year already and no religious leader has come forth and shown the world that the power of prayer can stop the coronavirus. Why then deceive the masses?
T MARKANDAN
Kloof