Government is worried that Eastern province has continued to record the highest Covid-19 positivity rates in the country during both the third and the current fourth waves of the pandemic.
The positivity rate in the province has hit as high as 36 percent and consistently been above 10 percent.
This came to light when stakeholders, who included the Presidential Covid-19 Advisor Professor Roma Chilengi and traditional leaders, met in Chipata to engage on ways of increasing the vaccine uptake as one of the interventions in the fight against the pandemic.
In a speech delivered for him by Chipata District Commissioner Elidah Mwanza< Eastern Province Permanent Secretary Paul Thole said the province has struggled with the pandemic because interventions have been perceived as interfering with people’s livelihoods. “Eastern province has been implementing numerous Covid-19 preventive and control measures. However, we have seen that these efforts have not been implemented fully in our communities, and adherence levels are close to none,” he noted. And traditional leaders listed some of the challenges that could be contributing to the low update in f the vaccine. Chief Mnukwa said long distance to vaccination centres is one of the contributing factors. “A lot of matters need to be addressed to change the status quo. For example, the distance to vaccination centres, and the need for increased sensitizations, among others,” he said. And responding to submissions by some headmen to make the vaccination exercise mandatory, Chief Mnukwa said the issue borders on human rights, making it impossible to force people even if the cause is good. Bearing a different view, Chief Madzimawe said the issue of Covid-19 borders on life and death, arguing that some harsh decisions need to be made. He argued that traditional leaders have in the past imposed decisions on their people for their own good, among them, the banning of the local brew commonly known as Kachasu. Chief Madzimawe added that there is need to take up leadership and make decisions for the betterment of the people. He announced that, with the N’cwala traditional ceremony coming up, he will only allow those who are vaccinated to join the group of dancers, commonly known as Impis that are coming from his chiefdom. “To my Impis, those who are not willing to get vaccinated please stay away and enjoy your rights of choosing to die,” he said. Meanwhile, Professor Chilengi challenged the traditional rulers to show leadership given the risks and challenges that Covid-19 has continued to inflict on human existence. He said traditional leaders have the authority and need to come to the aid of government that has done almost everything in its power to conquer the problem. “As government, we have put in measures, we have brought the vaccines, have health personnel in place, among others. This is why we are coming to you, because we have a problem that we need you to help us sort out,” he explained. He added that the Covid-19 situation in the region has been worrying, with regards to the low vaccine uptake and the high positivity rate. “It is unacceptable that other regions have had as low as 6 percent positivity rate while here the rate has been consistently high, up to over 30,” Professor Chilengi said.
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT WITH THE LACK OF REPORTING AND EDUDUCATION ON COVID
ITS NON EXCISTANT
And yet the Government has allowed the Ncwala ceremony to go ahead!
What I know is that WHO guidelines are that you can’t vaccinate a person that has tested positive to covid-19. You’re required to wait until the status of such person is reversed. The vaccines have been rolled out without test kits. The status of people being inoculated isn’t known because they’re not being tested. It’s likely that a good number of those being vaccinated in Eastern province might be positive, what with the reported high positivity rate? So what’s the purpose of promoting these vaccines? Do we want to protect people against the pandemic or we want to dispense of the vaccines by whatever means even if it doesn’t make sense?
This govt only cares about their strongholds. Out of all provinces why Eastern? Eastern has been shunned from development because hh is an angry childish man who thinks by doing this to eastern he is hurting my president ECL. When we left office covid was under control country wide including in hhs bedroom in money
I meant to say in monze
You talk of high positivity yet there are no deaths …if you are serious about it just vacinate the elderly. Just last week you distributed the highest number of condoms at some traditional ceremony. Stop making a big deal out covid-19 and focus on issues that really affect the nation or that region.
WHO SAID THERE ARE NO DEATHS ?
THERE ARE PEOPLE DYING EVERY DAY IN NUMBERS NONE OF WHICH ARE TESTED
TO MOST ZAMBIANS A DEATH IS A DEATH THE CAUSE IS IRRELEVANT
THE ONLY PORBLEM FACING THE NATION ARE THE 1d*10ts THAT WALK AMONGST US
Tikki you will not talk like that when your fat mother contracts covid and dies like a chicken tomorrow
I hope it gets you iwe chi #9 troll friend of diseases.Eastern is my home province and i wanna see my people healthy and active in nation building unlike the 10 years of PF stagnation.
Please just ignore the UK Based Impostor all it wants is to get under your skin and trade insults …its a troll.
Fuseke!