Chairperson,
The point made by the honourable Reverend from MK is accurate and laudable and we need to hold the Executive accountable, particularly for the hardships and suffering of our people — sick people that are waiting in queues for care and that are dying. This dire situation must be urgently addressed, and we as Parliament, as the honourable member pointed out, need to ensure that we exercise sufficient and proper oversight to resolve those challenges.
Chairperson, countries across the world have been asking questions, or even having full Parliamentary inquiries into how their governments handled the Covid-19 pandemic and what role Big Pharma and multinationals played in that regard. We as parliamentarians now know that our government was bullied into signing Covid-19 contracts with Big Pharma and paid billions of rands for Covid-19 injections on highly unfavourable terms with manufacturers who have now acknowledged on those contracts “that the long-term effects and efficacy of vaccines are not currently known and that there may be adverse effects of the vaccine that are not currently known.” That’s in the contracts that have been found out now.
We also know that many people are suffering from Covid-19 vaccine injuries with little or no recourse to effective medical treatment or compensation.
We also know that the World Health Organisation, for all its laudable work which we as ACDP acknowledge, is riddled with conflicts of interest from funding by Big Pharma, billionaires, and influential member states. It is also plagued by mismanagement, corruption and even allegations of racism.
Despite knowing this, the extensive amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 were accepted at the end of May when we were conducting our elections, without the South African public and without this Parliament having any say or oversight.
These amendments give very wide powers to the World Health Organisation — almost a power-grab — and potentially threaten a country’s sovereignty when it comes to public health issues.
The ACDP led a debate in the last Parliament and highlighted our concerns about these amendments and the planned Pandemic Treaty. The then Deputy Minister of Health (now Chairperson of the Health Portfolio Committee), Dr Dhlomo, gave us the undertaking that not only will the Pandemic Treaty be tabled in Parliament for ratification as is required in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution, but also the amendments of the International Health Regulations. The ACDP believes that these far-reaching amendments must be tabled in Parliament for ratification.
Honourable Chair, will the honourable Minister honour that undertaking and table the amendments in Parliament for ratification so that we as MPs and the broader public can fully understand what the Executive committed ourselves to?
I thank you.
