I’ve had my shot, and I’ve got no time for conspiracy theories

President Joe Biden caught my attention recently when he said: “We are now dealing with the pandemic of the unvaccinated, and these people are killing other people.” Biden was responding to a question by a reporter on the surge in Delta variant infections in the US. He was visibly angry with those who refuse to be vaccinated, because the Delta variant is threatening to reverse all the gains his administration has made since taking office.

The statistics and facts coming out of the US show that 99.9% of the cases resulting in severe illness, hospitalisation and death are people who are not vaccinated. These are important figures for us to take note of here at home.

The same stats, showing that the unvaccinated are more likely to suffer severe illness if they are infected, are coming out of the UK and other countries. This is proof of the importance and effectiveness of these vaccines. They are saving lives.

Recently, a study was done in the Western Cape that showed a huge reduction in the number of infections, hospitalisations and deaths among health-care workers after this group was vaccinated.

These are facts coming out of studies by scientists, not just guesswork by somebody not trained in the field. There is now clear scientific evidence showing that the vaccines are working and are safe. We must know these stats so that people don’t mislead us about the “dangers” of vaccines without any evidence.

Given the scientific evidence we now have and the proof that the vaccines work, I have a serious problem with those who continue to spread misinformation, conspiracy theories and fake news about them. Such behaviour should not be tolerated.

When people speak on the issue of vaccines they should produce facts to back up their statements, otherwise they should be taken to task by the law enforcement agencies. People are dying from this virus so it is totally irresponsible to spread lies and fake news about the vaccines.

I’m fully aware that people have the right to say no to being vaccinated, but no-one has the right to spread lies, fake news and conspiracy theories — that is flat-out wrong.

The feedback we are getting from the ramping up of the vaccine rollout is that it is running smoothly at all sites. It was also a wise move by the government to open up for walk-ins and offer jabs seven days a week. The department of health is now averaging around 200,000 jabs a day. This is incredible progress from where we were two months ago.

So when credit is due we must give it. We all want this rollout to succeed; a failed rollout does not help us because the country suffers and we suffer with it.

We also commend President Cyril Ramaphosa on the work he continues to do in acquiring and lobbying for vaccine doses for SA and our continent. We saw the result of his lobbying when the US donated more than 5-million doses. We need all the doses we can get to beat this deadly virus.

Scientists are already warning us of a fourth wave around December. We cannot afford any more waves, we simply cannot. We have seen and experienced how deadly each wave is. The loss of human life is just too much; people don’t even have time to grieve for their loved ones.

Our economy is on its knees, people have lost so much and we must all do what it takes to avoid a fourth wave. We must beat this deadly virus to avert the humanitarian and economic crises we are facing. Vaccines are the way to go — period.

I strongly believe that if the private sector, civil society and church/religious leaders continue to work with and support our government we will overcome this virus. No single person is safe until we are all safe.

The same goes for the political parties. They cannot afford to be bystanders while the battle rages. We understand that they have the right to criticise, but this battle is not only the government’s to fight, we must all fight it. We can unite and defeat the invisible enemy together or allow the virus to continue causing havoc. The choice is ours.

Last, I’m reminded of the words of our president in March last year when he said: “Fellow South Africans, this pandemic will pass, but it is up to us to determine how long it will last, how damaging it will be, and how long it will take our economy and our country to recover. We are indeed facing a grave emergency. But if we act together, if we act now, and if we act decisively, we will overcome it.”

Well, there you are, it is in our hands to do our part and get vaccinated. I have done my part, I’m vaccinated.

Happy Women’s Month! I’d like to take this opportunity to wish all the women of SA a happy Women’s Day tomorrow.

No-one has the right to spread lies, fake news and conspiracy theories