PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa was among the first person to be inoculated on Wednesday as South African launched its coronavirus vaccine campaign using Johnson & Johnson jabs after the rollout was delayed.
Speaking to the media after receiving a jab, Ramaphosa said he was confident the country’s vaccine rollout programme will go smoothly as planned.
Ramaphosa and Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize joined frontline healthcare workers in Khayelitsha, Western Cape, on Wednesday.
They were among the country’s first group of people to receive COVID-19 vaccine shots.
“I would like to congratulate the Vaccine Inter-Ministerial Committee, the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Vaccines, Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize and his team, and the Medical Research Council for responding so rapidly and effectively to this challenge,” said Ramaphosa.
“To demonstrate our confidence in this vaccine and help allay any fears that people may have, the Minister of Health and I will join the first health care workers to receive the vaccine in Khayelitsha. We have called on leaders in various sectors and parts of the country to lead by example and get inoculated publicly. We will therefore witness some Premiers, MECs and leaders from civil society, religious formations and traditional leadership being vaccinated in all provinces.”
A nurse who works in a maternity ward at a hospital in Khayelitsha township in Cape Town was the first to be immunised, hours after the first batch of 80,000 doses landed in the country on Tuesday.
The nurse, Zoliswa Gidi-Dyosi, looked relaxed as she received the jab, which was broadcast on live television.
“Our health system is robust, agile and effective. Our health workers are able to get to speed very quickly and I saw a real army of our health workers all knowledgeable about what we are doing,” said Ramaphosa.
“This is a milestone for our country. We are going to be rolling out our vaccine throughout the country in a number of health centres. I think it’s going to be flawless, I think it’s going to be done effectively.”
He added: “This is a new era for us and it will mean we restore the health of our nation through our health system that is robust and gaining strength. Let’s all have hope and faith in our system and in our health workers.”
The president said doomsayers should give health workers the opportunity to do their work.
