SJB: Govt. created health crisis and messed up vaccination programme

By Anuradha Hiripitiyage

The vaccination process had become a disaster because the government had no plan to minimise the spread of the pandemic, SJB National Organiser, Tissa Attanayake said yesterday.

Attanayake said that the other nations had placed orders for vaccines for coronavirus, but the Sri Lankan government had pinned its hopes on concoctions by shamans. “Vaccine manufacturers now can’t take more orders because they have to first deliver the orders already taken.

“These shamans used the name of Sinhala medicine although they are not traditional medical practitioners. They had political backing and because the government wanted to boost these people, Sri Lankans are suffering,” he said.

Attanayake said that a number of people had been given the AstraZeneca vaccine and the government had not maintained enough vaccine stocks for booster doses. Now, more than 600,000 are in trouble without the second dose.

“China has donated over a million vaccine doses. The government is without a proper plan. There is a lot of demand for Sinopharm too and the government has only decided to purchase the vaccine this week. Is it possible that China can give us millions of vaccines immediately? Sinopharm too must be having other commitments.”

The SJB National Organiser said that the government had waited way too long to impose travel restrictions. The state government of Victoria, in Australia, shutdown the state because 16 persons tested COVID-19 positive.

“But we waited until daily cases exceeded 3,000 a day. I urge the government to listen to experts and come up with a proper policy on COVID-19 management and vaccination.”