Monday, November 4, 2024

Travel bans imposed on Africa are discriminatory and unacceptable,African leaders need to find their voice

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Dr.Ayoade Alakija, the co-chair of the African Unions Vaccine Delivery Alliance has described the travel bans imposed on some Africa countries as discriminatory.” Why are we locking away Africa? Nobody is locking away Belgium or Israel. This is discriminatory, this is xenophobic,” she said.

Dr.Ayoade Alakija said it is now clear that had covid been first identified in Africa last year , the world would have locked Africa away and thrown the keys.There would have been no urgency to develope vaccines because Africa would have been expendable. Dr.Alakija said what is going on now was inevitable and a result of the worlds failure to vaccinate in an urgent and equitable manner; a result of hoarding by high income countries of the world. She said the travel bans are based on politics and not science. Dr.Alakija said it is time African leaders stand up and find their voice. African leaders need to wake up and realise this is not business as usual,the continent is at stake , african lives are at stake and we can not allow the world to do this to us.

Right now not enough is known about the omicron variant.

Dr Angelique Coetzee, the Chairperson of the South African Medical Association said she was first alerted when patients started presenting with extreme tiredness and body aches in mid November.This change in clinical picture from the picture that was previously seen with the delta variant is what prompted the sequencing of the variant. Dr.Coetzee stressed that the symptoms were extremely mild and the knee jerk reaction by countries rushing to restrict travel on South africa and other African countries unacceptable.She questioned whether with this kind of reaction, South African scientists are expected to be transparent going forward.

32 COMMENTS

  1. To a certain extent, I agree with the sentiment expressed and concern raised by Dr.Alakija, in the past 4 days, there has been alot of talk regarding omicron compared to the Delta variant, and the measure taken seems to be too drastic. However, I do understand that among the EU countries, there is Wave 5 of the virus, which is sweeping through the continent, and the countries are doing everything possible to contain the spread. Countries like Austria, Slovakia are in Lockdown, so if they are restricting their people, what would prevent them from restricting Africans?
    And Dr.Alakija is right regarding hoarding of the vaccines, clearly, Africa has been left to “die”. Yes, if this damn virus had originated from Africa, Africa would have been in “lockdown” forever.

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  2. Africans must also take responsibility for their actions. African superstition has a lot to do with vaccination hesitancy. SA has in excess of 1.8 million doses about to expire because residents are hesitant and not because someone is hoarding

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    • Maganizo stop spreading lies like Donald Trump. Africans haven’t had any vaccination hesitancy. Only the vaccines are arriving late in the continent. The americans have actively refused to get vaccines, especially the Republicans blindly following white supremacist Trump. In Hungary and Austria people have protested against being vaccinated leading to riots. Why are nt you blaming all these for new variants. Some of you listen to one whiteman and think he is speaking the truth. That is why there’s a lotof mental colonization in Africa.

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  3. I LISTENED TO THE LADY’S EXHORTATION ON BBC AND I I THOUGHT FINE TO BLAME WESTERN LEADERS BUT WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR OURSELVES?
    FOR STARTERS IN ZAMBIA LET US MANDATE VACCINATION FOR ALL CIVIL SERVANTS AND THE MILITARY AND ALL WHO DEAL WITH THEM MEANING THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND WE SHALL SEE A SPIKE IN THE VACCINATED!
    OF COURSE LET US GET MORE SAFE COVID-19 VACCINES.
    MINING COMPANIES AND OTHERS SHOULD FOLLOW SUIT AND ALL WHO ENTER ZAMBIA SHOULD SHOW PROOF OF VACCINATION OR NO ENTERY!

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  4. Great patriot. She studied abroad but was not brain washed by the westerners. Meanwhile we have upnd diasporans like spaka, tarino and rest who are merely toilet cleaners and bum wipers abroad and yet act as if they are now Europeans. Just read their comments here these kunta kinte boys

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  5. It is absolutely discriminatory for countries like the UK and USA that have over 50 000 new daily covid cases to ban countries in africa that have fewer than 1000 cases per day. This omicron , so far is causing only mild symptoms in the unvaccinated – thats a very good sign. Our ICU’s are not overflowing like in Europe . Africa needs to put Africa first. Its about time we stop taking all the crap the West hands down to us. If they are having soaring covid cases we should also ban them from coming to Africa.If they must come ,they should quarantine in our local hotels for 14 days too. In terms of covid crisis Africa has fared the best despite its poor health infrastructure and lack of vaccines.

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  6. WEDDINGS AND IFILANGA MULILO EVERY DAY WITH NO MASKS. WHEN AFRICA TAKES SOCIAL DISTANCING SERIOUSLY, RESPECT WILL FOLLOW ,

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  7. This new variant was originally detected in
    South Africa and its linked to southern African countries so I don’t think it’s discrimination.Vaccination figures in African countries is very low in comparison to western countries so this is another reason.

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  8. Iwe Moto “originally detected in South Africa” as you put it doesnt mean made in South Africa.. No scientist would think like that unless they are quacks.
    I can contract a virus in Europe visit Zanzibar and fall sick there then a Scientist diagnoses it. That wont mean it is from Zanziba.
    I It just means Scientists in South Africa were faster or cleverer than their counterparts elsewhere to identify the variant. There is right now a case in Belgium from a person with no African contacts

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  9. Let me speak about my own country Zambian; taste dose of someone’s own medicine When your Zambia Constitution excludes Grade seven participating in leadership.

    Don’t take it personal.

  10. Let me speak about my own country Zambian; taste dose of someone’s own medicine When your Zambia Constitution excludes Grade seven participating in leadership.

  11. Let me speak about my own country Zambia; no different than when your Zambia Constitution excludes Grade seven participating in leadership.

    Don’t take it personal.

  12. And this is where our uncle Tom HH runs to with a big grin on his face thinking they like him…the west only likes our natural resources,….if they had enough natural resources they would ban Africa for ever…African leaders should work together and create a United Africa

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  13. UTH Grad you seem to suffer from serious impulsive behaviour, insecurity and victim mentality, always blaming others (Whiteman, Trump, Republicans) and not taking responsibility. Where did the vaccines which arrived late in African countries come from?

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  14. No different than when excluding other based on their education to participating in leadership.

    Don’t take it personal.

  15. We told you so many times that the so called saviours in the west can’t wait to change the narrative about origins of diseases. God has protected African from evil. African’s have been cut out from sharing the technology to make their own vaccines. What the west don’t tell you is that the technology to detect variants came from Africa. What Africans need to do is get together and take matters in their own hands to develop a vaccine for their own people. We should never depend on the west for anything full stop.

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  16. This discriminatory tendency is going to lead to a lot of countries now especially in the third world from falsifying figures or not reporting them altogether out of fear of being discriminated against in terms of travellers, tourists, world trade. They should be fair if they don’t want that to happen.

  17. There is no discrimination here … Africans are refusing to be vaccinated so what do you expect. Covid 19 is real, listen to science and not heresay or theories like it’s the mark of the beast … Get vaccinated or be locked out period. Why do we have to blame the West for everything, it’s time Africa started taking responsibility

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  18. There is some discrimination here……..

    During the last travel bans, India which had far more cases than African countries that were banned was not originally put on that list……

    Only an outcry forced the UK to add India.

    This only shows how weak Africa is in terms of diplomacy and economic leverage with west………

    We have our selves to blame…….

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  19. Look at this toilet boy spaka. You have only yourself and people like hh who run to west to blame. Hh acts like a little excited baby when he is in the midst of westerners. He even goes to them with a huge begging bowl. Embarrassing and and then you wonder why you are treated thjs way. You become asylum seekers there instead of coming back home here to develop your continent. Upnd diasporans you are all a disgrace. Your party is now in power so why are you still abroad

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  20. They didn’t close their boarders because the covid variant came from Africa. Africans need to look at this matter from the positive side. We have go through lockdown when Africa countries allowed it’s citizens to move around when the covid pandemic was at its pick. They don’t want to go through that again, so the right way is to keep any variants away from their boarders.

  21. Jigga Kayama Simangulungwa (formerly Corruption scandals: 48 Houses Social Security Cash Luxury Presidential Jet Ambulances Fire Trucks Mukula Trees Ndola-Lusaka Rd Malawi Maizegate Fuelgate Swaziland landgate Zesco Loans Honeybee) Jigga Kayama Simangulungwa (formerly Corruption scandals: 48 Houses Social Security Cash Luxury Presidential Jet Ambulances Fire Trucks Mukula Trees Ndola-Lusaka Rd Malawi Maizegate Fuelgate Swaziland landgate Zesco Loans Honeybee)

    One of the lessons learned from the original Wuhan virus is the hesitant in shutting down borders to contain the virus.
    You can see discrimination everywhere if you want to. But please take responsibility for your own destiny.
    What are all those universities we have doing? Why haven’t they developed an African vaccine by now? Even stealing the technology and IP like the way the Chinese and the Russians do. Always pointing figures and crying victim will never help us.

  22. If the COVID pandemic had been the monster that it is being portrayed, all Africans would have died by now! Wake up Africans this is just a means to control you. Stop being stupid. Hundreds of thousand of Europeans die of flu every year, we don’t. Hundreds of thousands of Europeans have been killed by COVID, but very few African have. This bloody thing emanated from China and yet the finger is pointing at us!

  23. South African Scientist should not announce any more findings regarding this covid issue, moreover its the Europeans and American who die enmass so why demonize Africans for just discovering a variant? what they should be doing is just to alert government and recommend measure.

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