SACP slams Covid-19 ‘vaccine imperialism’
South African Communist Party (SACP) general-secretary Blade Nzimande has vowed to strengthen the party’s campaign against what it calls Covid-19 vaccine imperialism and nationalism.
Nzimande addressed the media on Sunday following the SACP’s central committee plenary.
He slammed the Western countries that procure more vaccine than it requires.
“The augmented central committee welcomes the emerging effort by the government to build domestic vaccine productive capacity through a state-owned pharmaceutical company.
“Western powers, which have bought more vaccine doses than they need for their populations, also use imperialist measures to deepen the dependency of global south countries on pharmaceuticals produced by their multinational corporations,” said Nzimande.
He says companies that monopolise the procurement of Covid-19 vaccine undermines developing countries.
“Those companies have made Covid-19 vaccines accessible to their governments at lower prices, while using their monopoly to rip off global south countries, undermine democratic national sovereignty in the ‘developing countries’ through unbearable conditionality, and not taking responsibility for anything that could go wrong.
“The SACP will in the coming period strengthen its national and international mobilisation against Covid-19 vaccine imperialism and nationalism. The augmented central committee called upon our government to not limit its Covid-19 vaccine access strategy to the West, but also seek co-operation with Cuba, China, and Russia, among others, as they have developed vaccine development and production capabilities,” he said.
Nzimande says the SAHPRA’s decision- making when approving vaccines should be investigated.
“The way the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) conducts itself leaves much to be desired. A probe into what clearly appears to be a Western bias or capture reflected in SAHPRA’s pharmaceutical trajectory calls for a probe. For example, Cuba has developed and produces Heberprot-P, which plays a key role in treating diabetic complications.
“The medicine is revered in many parts of the world, and by the World Health Organisation, for preventing situations where amputation in affected patients becomes necessary. However, the approval of the medicine has been frustrated for years in our country, within SAHPRA.
“This is the same regarding the Cuban developed Heberon® Alfa R, which is used therapeutically in COVID-19 cases and has contributed by no small measure to countries such as China dealing with Covid-19 much better than countries like South Africa and the United States.”
