Shortage of measles vaccines due to COVID, not government's ineptitude- Kwadaso MP

The Member of Parliament for Kwadaso, Professor Kingsley Nyarko, has challenged claims by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo peddled untruth when he suggested that there was a global shortage for measles vaccines globally.

In the view of the MP, measles vaccines have been in shortage since 2022.

The National Chairman of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, while delivering the party’s version of the State of the Nation Address, called the True State of the Nation Address, questioned the credibility of President Akufo-Addo for suggesting that there’s global shortage of measles vaccines for new-born babies.

Asiedu Nketiah further accused the president of dishonesty, questioning how Nigeria could supply vaccines to Ghana when there was truly a global shortage.

But Kingsley Nyarko has said that he is “disappointed in Asiedu Nketiah” for claiming that since Ghana took delivery of the vaccines from Nigeria, it means the rest of the African countries have some.

“It’s a flawed argument. It’s like suggesting that Ghanaians are poor, does it therefore mean that every Ghanaian is poor? No,” he told the morning show host of Kumasi-based Oyerepa TV, Kwesi Parker-Wilson.

Prof Kingsley Nyarko further cited a UNICEF report dated May 4, 2022, indicating that there was a spike in measles cases globally, increasing by 79% in the first quarter of 2022.

“Some of the reasons given by UNICEF is due to pandemic-related disruptions, increasing inequalities in access to vaccines, and the diversion of resources from routine immunization all played a role. And that’s what the president said.

“… because of the pandemic most of the vaccines manufacturing companies across the globe diverted resources into getting vaccines for COVID-19 and they neglected the manufacturing of some of these vaccines (including polio, measles etc). So, the president gave us the facts,” he explained.

Prof Kingsley Nyarko further insisted that President Akufo-Addo indeed delivered the true state of the nation to Ghanaians, and that the NDC only twisted narratives to suit their propaganda.

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