Cape Town - With an average of more than 1 500 new Covid-19 cases a day in the metropole, Cape Town cannot afford for its vaccination drive to be derailed by fake news.
So said the City following an “ongoing conspiracy theories that are fuelling vaccine hesitancy among some of our most vulnerable groups”.
The City said since the roll-out of the vaccination campaign in February, the metropole has made significant gains in terms of the number of vaccinations administered, with this figure at more than 400 000.
“There has also been good uptake in the 50 to 59 age band, since becoming eligible for vaccinations. This week, registration opens for the 35 to 49 age group. It is hoped that persons in this group will bring their elders along to vaccination sites, for onsite registration and vaccination, if they haven’t done so already,” the City said.
Mayco Member for Health, Zahid Badroodien, said the acceleration of the vaccination drive has been positive but there remain pockets in the population where uptake has been slow.
“The accelerated pace of the vaccination drive is good news indeed, because it means we are safeguarding more people against severe cases of Covid-19. However, there continue to be pockets of our population who have qualified for vaccination, but where the uptake is low. This could be due to the registration process, but we are also concerned that fake news and conspiracy theories are causing vaccine hesitancy.
“Among the stories we’ve heard is that the vaccine causes Covid-19, or that it is an attempt to track individuals and even that it is a form of population control. Such misinformation has the potential to seriously impact our efforts to safeguard our population. While one does not want to legitimise fake news, it is important to address the issue, because it could mean the difference between life and death,” said Badroodien.
With regard to fatality management, Badroodien confirmed the City’s cemeteries experienced a slight increase in burials in the past seven days compared to the previous week – from 390 to 410.
Maitland cemetery had 108 burials, Klip Road 96 and Welmoed cemetery had 86.
“Our cemeteries are managing the demand currently. The City cannot, however, indicate with certainty how many of these were Covid-19 burials, as the cause of death is often either listed as natural or non-natural causes. The City continues to engage with undertakers and other stakeholders in this area to ensure that we are able to assist them where necessary,” said Badroodien.
Cape Times