SANDF acquisition of non-approved Cuban COVID-19 drug draws more criticism
Written by defenceWeb -
Heberon.
The decision to import Cuban medication to provide heightened protection against COVID-19 for soldiers at a cost in excess of R200 million, apparently contradicting South African medical regulations, attracted the attention of the Auditor-General and the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) and others to date.
The medication was allegedly smuggled into South Africa in March last year aboard an aircraft chartered from SAA bringing a “brigade” of Cuban military medical doctors to help local medics fighting the pandemic.
The Military Command Council (MCC) of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) last week issued a statement defending its acquisition of the Cuban Interferon drug with a thinly veiled support statement from SANDF religious liaison and communication officer, Colonel Sebatolo Loate, following.
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SA’s first Covid-19 vaccines are on course to touch down at OR Tambo on Monday, but they won’t carry the security measures that could best protect them from criminals.
The 1-million AstraZeneca shots, which have been produced by and procured via the Serum Institute of India, will be given to frontline health-care workers, so the vials are set to be transported to some public health facilities where theft of medicines has been prevalent.
(Photo by Gallo Images/Ziyaad Douglas)
Six people have been arrested and charged for carrying unregistered medicine and importing drugs without a licence.
According to police, the suspects were found in possession of tablets suspected to be ivermectin .
Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug, has generated significant attention because some people claim it is a potential cure for Covid-19.
Customs officials at the OR Tambo International Airport have seized hundreds of thousands of tablets of a drug some people claim can be a remedy against the coronavirus, police said on Saturday.
The police said in a statement that tablets suspected to be ivermectin , worth six million rand, had been seized at the airport in the past two weeks.