Was the fanfare about the 600,000 doses of the Astra Zeneca Vaccines necessary?

A population of about 60 million, have already done the first dose for nearly 20 million without any fanfare.

However, Ghana received 600,000 of the nearly 65 million doses we’d require amidst fanfare. Come to think of it, every Ghanaian would need two doses to obtain the required impunity against the COVID-19. Thus over 65 million doses ooooo.

Above all, the outlook is that, the vaccine is going to be a part of our life for a very long time to come. Knowing that the vaccine not coming to cause COVID-19 to evaporate into thin air and out of out populations, was that media sensation and hype necessary? Are we not raising people’s expectations unnecessarily?

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Ghana needs not less than 65 million doses to cover the population, to ensure that we do not succumb to the virus, if we are infected. Infectivity, mind you, is only addressed through social distancing, isolation, mask use, hand hygiene etc; which may linger for a while. Why do we raise hopes, through our actions and inactions, as if we’ve found that ultimate silver bullet?

What percentage of the over 30 millions (multiplied by two) citizens can we vaccinate with 600,000 doses? Are the fanfares not doing us more harm than good? I hesitate to use the word ‘mediocrity’. Let’s look at the bigger picture.

By George Kwaku Yeboah.