Reports by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Source : 8world
News (1)
40 community cases in Singapore between 26 April and 1 May 2021
As of 1 May 2021, there are 40 new local confirmed covid cases this week, and there are five clusters among the communities and guest worker dormitories of Singapore.
News (2)
Tuas South Community Nursing Facility cluster
When was listed as an infected group: 30 April 2021
Related cases: 3
A 39-year-old Vietnamese cleaner who worked in a community nursing facility in Tuas South was diagnosed on 27 April. She has completed two doses of vaccine on 19 February.
The 26-year-old permanent resident female colleague who lived with her and the 41-year-old Malaysian roommate were subsequently diagnosed on 29 April.
News (3)
Infection of personnel at Changi Airport checkpoint, close contacts include a staff of Goodwood Park Hotel
When was listed as an infected group: 29 April 2021
Related cases: 8
The ICA officer who is responsible for handling immigration procedures for passengers at Changi Airport Terminal 1 was diagnosed on 27 April. Because he is allergic to drugs, he has not yet been vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2.
He had dinner with seven family members on 25 April, and seven people were diagnosed on the 28 and 29 April. Among the seven family members, three members work in Ion Orchard, Tan Tock Seng Hospital and Goodwood Park Hotel respectively. There were no media announcements on the covid patient from Goodwood Park Hotel.
The ICA officer's 32-year-old wife is a nurse at Tan Tock Seng Hospital but does not work in the relevant ward of the infected group in the hospital. Associate Professor Mai Xiwei, Director of Medical Services of the Ministry of Health, said at a press conference on 30 April that she has no obvious connection with this cluster.
News (4)
Tan Tock Seng Hospital Infection Group
When was listed as an infected group: 29 April 2021
Related cases: 16
A 46-year-old Filipino female nurse in Ward 9D of Tan Tock Seng Hospital was diagnosed on 27 April. The hospital immediately closed the affected ward and tested the patients and staff who had been in this ward. Four other cases were quickly detected.
By 29 April, as many as nine medical staff and patients in the 9D ward had been diagnosed, and the Tan Tock Seng Hospital confirmed the presence of an infected group.
News (5)
Total 4 wards under lock down
Tan Tock Seng Hospital closed four wards related to confirmed cases on 30 April, namely Wards 7D, 9C, 9D and 10B. The entire hospital's 1,100 inpatients and 4,500 staff must also be tested.
News (6)
Singapore reports 31st death from covid on 1 May 2021
As of 1 May 2021, the number of related cases in this infection group has increased to 16. In addition, an 88-year-old female patient passed away due to illness, becoming the 31st local death from covid.
The source of infection in this infection group is still unknown, but a 57-year-old patient diagnosed on the 28th had fever symptoms as early as 16 April, but the test result was negative on 18 April, and another one had no symptoms. The 94-year-old patient who was diagnosed on 28 April had a positive serum test result.
News (7)
A student diagnosed, Edgefield Secondary School classrooms locked down
There is a confirmed covid case in Edgefield Secondary School. All students will study at home next week, and all teachers and students must also be tested.
A statement from the Ministry of Education pointed out that a student at Edgefield Secondary School in Punggol developed symptoms of acute respiratory infection when he arrived at the school for the last time on Thursday (29 April). He then sought medical attention and was diagnosed on Friday (30 April).
For safety reasons, students, staff and foreign suppliers who have had close contact with the confirmed student will be quarantined, and the school will also be cleaned and disinfected.
Due to the recent increase in community cases, and the confirmed student is not yet associated with known cases, the Ministry of Health will require all school students, staff, and foreign suppliers to be tested for covid.
In view of the need for a period of time for covid testing, from next Tuesday (4 May) to Friday (7 May), all students will change to study at home.
Teachers will also keep in touch with students and parents, and all those who need to be tested for covid must also reduce their contact with others.
The Ministry of Education urges all students and staff to maintain good personal hygiene and observe safe distance measures, including wearing masks, washing hands frequently, wiping equipment and tables, seeking medical advice if they feel unwell, and returning to school when they recover.
News (8)
The CCP Political and Legal Committee mocks India's epidemic and leads to protests, accused of "inhumanity"
Reporter : Li Jing / Editor : Sun Yun
Image : India's medical system is on the verge of collapse, leading to a sharp increase in the number of severe illnesses and deaths. The picture shows the cremation scene in Delhi. (Jewel Samad/AFP via Getty Images)
After Xi Jinping sent a message of condolences to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the Indian epidemic, the official Weibo of the Political and Legal Committee of the Communist Party of China published a post mocking the Indian epidemic. It was protested by the Indian Embassy in China and caused an uproar. Netizens commented that they never expected that the bottom line of people was so low, "so low that they can openly mock the passing of life."
On 1 May, Indian officials stated that there were 401,993 confirmed cases in the country that day. According to official statistics, on average, 2.5 people die from the epidemic every minute in India. When the epidemic in India got out of control, many countries around the world provided support.
At present, cases of India variant strains have been detected in 20 countries and regions including China, the United States and Singapore. Outsiders worry that the epidemic in India may endanger the world.
On 1 May, the official Weibo of the news website of the CCP’s Political and Legal Affairs Commission "China Changan.com" released a composite picture titled "China Ignition VS India Ignition", with a hashtag on the Indian epidemic, implying that "China ignites a rocket, India set fire to cremation to burn corpses" to mock the epidemic in India.
The Weibo has aroused the attention and heated discussion of social media at home and abroad, and many "wumaos" and angry youth have been ignited. After the Weibo of "China Changan Net" caused protests from the Indian Embassy in China, the Weibo was deleted.
Image : The CCP’s official Weibo post mocking the Indian epidemic was accused by public opinion as “inhumane”. (Screenshot of Weibo)
Shen Yi, a commentator on the Chinese Communist Party’s official media "Global Times" and director of the International Governance Research Base of Cyberspace at Fudan University, reposted this Weibo from "China Changan.com" and said "This picture is pretty good" and "India is such a coquettish bitch." The temper caused by piety is also necessary. As for the Blessed Mother, if you want to brush your feelings, please go to India to burn wood."
Regarding Shen Yi and the "China Chang'an Net" post, Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of the Global Times, published a Weibo, saying that official agency accounts lack a sense of morality, and that official agency accounts lack understanding of what role they play in foreign-related public opinion. . Hu Xijin believes that "official agency accounts must be restrained." But Hu Xijin's view was refuted by Shen Yi.
At present, this incident is still fermenting. Many netizens said, "The comparison picture posted by China Changan Net shows that it is inhumane, it is embarrassing, and it is made." "The lack of humanity and despicability have reached such a point." "I know some people have a very low bottom line, but I never expected it to be so low, so low that it can openly mock the passing of life, and so low that it is so low that it is proud of it."
Twitter netizen "LT Vision" believes that "The CCP Political and Legal Committee has become more powerful under Xi Jinping, and often represents the highest level of the CCP on hot public opinion issues in Chinese society. Recently, the CCP Political and Legal Committee used China to launch rockets to compare the severity of the epidemic in India. Burning corpses. The bold and arrogant attitude of the CCP’s Political and Legal Committee can't even pass the first mouthpiece of the CCP's external publicity and public opinion, Hu Xijin of the Global Times. The CCP's inhuman and abnormal behavior can help the world learn more about the CCP ."
In addition, "China Changan Net" published a similar comparison chart on April 30. The picture on the left is the construction site of Wuhan Vulcan Mountain Hospital, and the picture on the right is the open corpse site in India. The post said "Huoshenshan in China, "Huoshenshan" in India", with the topic tag "Change the crematorium for dogs to human use in Delhi, India". In the middle of the night of 1 May, the blog post was deleted.
Some netizens said, "What you have said on Weibo can be deleted, but the despicable image that has been exposed and left in the eyes of the world cannot be deleted. More importantly, those who cheered and cheered in the comments, those thousands of people. The twisted soul behind the phone screen cannot be deleted."
News (9)
UN Report: Almost half of Myanmar's population face poverty in 2022
Source : The Irrawaddy
The impacts of military rule and the COVID-19 pandemic could force nearly half of Myanmar’s population into poverty by 2022, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has reported.
The UNDP said a year into the coronavirus crisis, the Feb. 1 coup compounded its socioeconomic effects. “If the situation on the ground persists, the poverty rate could double by the beginning of 2022,” it warned in the report published on Friday.
Myanmar has 54.5 million people, according to the World Bank. The country has been under the military rule for three months on Saturday.
“In the worst-case scenario, 48.2 percent of Myanmar’s population will live in poverty,” the report said. It said the twin crises were causing significant losses of wages and income, particularly for small businesses, and restricted access to food, basic services and social protection for the wider population.
Achim Steiner, the UNDP’s administrator, said: “From 2005 to 2017, Myanmar managed to nearly halve the number of people living in poverty. However, the challenges of the past 12 months have put all of these hard-won development gains at risk.
“Without functioning democratic institutions, Myanmar faces a tragic and avoidable backslide towards levels of poverty not seen in a generation,” Steiner said.
Myanmar, a least developed country, has made significant achievements in poverty reduction over the last decade. In 2017, Myanmar had a poverty rate of 24.8 percent, down from 48.2 percent in 2005.
By the end of 2020, 83 percent of Myanmar’s households reported that their incomes had been, on average, almost halved due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the number of people living below the poverty line was estimated to have increased by 11 percentage points, according to the UNDP.
The situation worsened further with the February coup, with projections indicating a further 12 percentage point increase in poverty, the UNDP reported.
It warned that all economic reports since the coup indicated that country is approaching economic collapse.
Last year, Myanmar’s GDP growth has fallen to 1.8 percent due to the effects of COVID-19, however, the World Bank and Asian Development Bank were forecasting a bounce back to 6 percent growth this year.
The World Bank has since projected that Myanmar’s economic growth is set to shrink by 10 percent this financial year as military rule hammers what was one of the region’s fastest-growing economies.
It said protests, strikes, military action, reductions in mobility and disruption to public services, like banking, logistics and internet access, would crush economic activity.
Following the coup, foreign direct investment dried up, including in existing projects, as western countries imposed sanctions on the military regime. Nearly 200,000 garment workers and around 300,000 to 400,000 construction workers lost their jobs following the coup, according to trade unions.
The UNDP said women and children are expected to be hit heaviest by COVID-19 and military rule, especially in urban areas, where most low-income families live. Myanmar’s cities have also been at the center of the coronavirus outbreaks and military crackdowns.
“Child poverty is expected to remain high, with more than half of children living in poverty in the pessimistic scenario. This will further exacerbate the intergenerational transmission of poverty, which, coupled with potential school closures, may have a devastating impact on the human capital of the next generation,” UNDP said.
Without rapid corrective action on economic, social, political and human rights policies, these scenarios will derail Myanmar’s efforts to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, the agency reported.
International support will play an important role in safeguarding the well-being of Myanmar’s population, it added.
As of 30 April 2021, there are 17 newly confirmed covid cases in Myanmar with a total of 142,831 confirmed covid cases and 3209 deaths. The number of reported cases fell to 0 on 7 February 2021 due to the anti-coup protests and crackdown before rising to 21 on 9 February and fluctuations below 50 followed. There are no new cases on 21 March 2021 in Myanmar.
News (10)
China Airlines' pilots complain about staying conditions at quarantine dormitory
The China Airlines pilot’s infection case expanded to cover the quarantine hotel Novotel Taoyuan Airport Hotel. The Epidemic Command Centre urgently evacuated 109 quarantined pilots to the Taiyin dormitory in Yangmingshan for centralized quarantine. The pilots complained they were treated like prisoners and blast the dormitory looks "like a concentration camp."
According to "United Daily News", a China Airlines pilot complained on 29 April that the crew members were moved to 6 isolation centers without warning, and 109 of them were sent to Yangmingshan Taiwan Bank, where in 2020 a Taiwanese businessman of a chartered flight from Wuhan was quarantined. The dormitory, except for the rudimentary equipment and messy floors, is said to have been disinfected but is covered with rat droppings, cockroach droppings and a lot of hair. It is not possible to order delivery during the quarantine period.
The staff in the quarantine station will call on a loudspeaker at 7 am every day. Everyone gets up and eats breakfast, just like in a prison, not only disrupting their work and rest, but also disrupting their lives. In addition, family members can only take advantage of the two times 10 am and 3 pm visiting hours every day to deliver daily necessities to the guard room. The contents must not include extension cords, razors, nail scissors, glass bottles or iron and aluminum cans, etc., regardless of whether they are present or not.
Private items have to be inspected one by one, and smoking and drinking are not allowed. The pilots questioned these regulations as a serious violation of privacy and human rights. However, Chen Shizhong, commander of the epidemic center, commented, "Living in a quarantine dormitory is for quarantine, not a crime."
Regarding Commander Chen Shizhong’s response to "centralized quarantine is not a tourist place", he criticized that no one asked to stay in a five-star hotel. At least it is necessary to provide humane treatment, and not to frame the crew members wanted to stay in high-end hotels.
News (11)
The centralized quarantine station was criticized by the pilot as "like a concentration camp". Wang Bisheng responded!
Reporter : Ye Weichen, TVBS
China Airlines pilots were infected and quarantined in Novotel Hotel causing a mass infection. The command centre moved 109 pilots to 6 centralized quarantine stations including Yangmingshan for centralized quarantine, but a pilot broke the news to the media that the environment was dirty and the management method was "like a concentration camp." Wang Bisheng, the deputy head of the medical response team responsible for the quarantine management, also responded on Facebook.
A China Airlines pilot complained that the internal equipment of the centralized quarantine station was rudimentary and the floor was messy. It claimed to have disinfection but was covered with rat and cockroach dung. In addition, during the period, it was not possible to order delivery, and would be called to eat by a loudspeaker at 7 am every da for breakfast, and life is disturbed like in a prison. Even family members only have a fixed period of time when they want to send supplies, and things will be checked one by one. Extension cords, razors and other items cannot be sent, questioning a serious violation of privacy and human rights.
Image : Wang Bisheng pointed out that the centralized quarantine station will accept all kinds of personnel from various countries, so the management rules will be slightly stricter. (Photo/Review of Wang Bisheng's Facebook).
Wang Bisheng also responded to the post on Facebook on 2 May and pointed out that the reason why everyone was moved to the centralized quarantine station was to cut off the potential chain of infection, and here was to relocate high-risked personnel, under the conditions of slightly higher management intensity than home isolation and epidemic prevention hotels, to indeed achieve infection control and safety management.
Wang emphasizes that "Because the centralized quarantine station will accept all kinds of personnel from various countries, the management rules will be slightly strict." The centralized quarantine station can experience the anxiety, anger, depression and depression of the quarantine personnel, and the part that does not do well will also accept and advice humbly.
Image : After the employees of China Airlines and Novotel were transferred to the centralized quarantine station, some people also left a small note to thank the command center and the centralized quarantine station for their assistance. (Photo/Flip Wang Bisheng's Facebook) He also posted a photo.
In fact, since the employees of China Airlines and Novotel were transferred to the centralized quarantine station, some people also left a small note to thank the command center and the centralized quarantine station for their assistance. Wang Bisheng said that the current incident is still under development and investigation, and he also urged not to attack witch hunts against specific personnel. Only by uniting against the epidemic can Taiwanese overcome the crisis as soon as possible.
News (12)
Number of covid cases break the 150 million mark, one Taiwanese died in India
The pandemic spread, and the second wave of the epidemic in India deteriorated rapidly. In the afternoon of 1 May, a Taiwanese cadre surnamed Yang died in a hospital in Gurgaon. Reportedly, he is the first Taiwanese to die from the epidemic in India. According to tracking data from the Johns Hopkins University website in the United States, as of 7 am on 2 May, at least 3.1887854 people worldwide have died and at least 151.72 million have been confirmed.
News (13)
3 newly imported confirmed cases in Guangxi, closed-loop management after entry
Reporter : Huang Yanmei / Source: China News Network / http://www.chinanews.com/sh/2021/05-02/9469202.shtml / Translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
The Health Commission of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region notified in Nanning on 2 May 2021 that on 1 May 2021, Guangxi has 3 newly inbound confirmed cases and closed-loop management is carried out after entry.
According to the notification, there are no new suspected cases or asymptomatic infections in Guangxi as of 2 May 2021.
News (14 to (19) / Source : Mingpao
News (14)
Experts: Hong Kong communities may have more than one variant transmission chain
South African covi strain suspected to be circulating in Hong Kong
The highly contagious South African new crown variant virus strain is suspected to be circulating in Hong Kong. The first Indian man who brought the variant virus into the community and lives in Jordan. About half a month after the end of the quarantine, the Tung Chung Filipino domestic helper began to develop the disease. . Based on the analysis of PolyU and the University of Hong Kong, the two variant viruses have the same genes.
Nobody knows the transmission relationship between the two or whether there is another invisible source that infected the two.
Different virus genes of covid cases in Kennedy
As for the virus genes of the Filipino domestic helpers in Kennedy, the genes are different.
PolyU expert Xiao Jieheng does not rule out there is more than one chain of variant virus transmission in Hong Kong. The University of Hong Kong expert Yuan Guoyong believes that the current loopholes in the entry quarantine and quarantine measures are urged to test antibodies for people who have recently left the quarantine hotel and trace contacts to block the chains of transmission.
News (15)
Over 1000 people quarantined yet no local cases on 1 May 2021, 8 inbound cases
There were no local confirmed cases in Hong Kong yesterday, and the 8 confirmed cases were all imported cases. The latest Filipino domestic helper who was found to be infected with the variant virus lives in Block 11 of Yue Tao Heen, Yingwan Garden, Tung Chung. About 1,020 people in 400 households are under quarantine. However, the Department of Health said about 10 households could not be found and the tracking office will follow up.
News (16)
Five variant cases involving maids in Hong Kong
Together with the aforementioned Filipino domestic helpers, there are a total of 5 variant cases confirmed in the community in Hong Kong. The Polytechnic University team conducted the latest two cases from the night before yesterday to yesterday morning, namely, a Filipino domestic helper living in Tung Chung (Case 11,773) and his 10-month-old female owner (Case 11,774) did the whole genome sequencing of the virus, and compared with the first variant.
The case, the comparison of the virus genes of an Indian man (the 11,643th case), confirmed that all 3 persons belonged to the B.1.351 South African variant virus strain, and the genetic sequence was 100% identical. As for the girlfriend of the Indian man (Case 11,672), the team did not sequence her, but it is expected to be the same as the Indian man.
News (17)
"I haven't seen the two of them ever been together", PolyU experts worry about asymptomatic infections
The Indian male was in Yau Tsim Mong and Cheung Chau from 8 to 16 April 2021 while his girlfriend worked at the Central Plaza Clinic in Central and Western District. He became ill on 23 April and is temporarily absent. She was in the same place with the first two.
Tung Chung Filipino domestic helpers were mainly active in Tung Chung and Tsing Yi.
Associate Professor Hsiao Kit-Hang of the Department of Medical Technology and Information Sciences of PolyU said that the three people are quite sure that there is an epidemiological connection. It is believed that the transmission was from an Indian male to the two Tung Chung. If it is not transmitted directly, it is even more worrying. It means there are still South African variants. The invisible patients of the virus have not been found, and they are still wandering in the community. The authorities should find out where they are visiting and follow up the investigation.
As for the Filipino domestic helper working at No. 8 Kennedy Road (Case 11,730), Xiao Jieheng said that he was carrying the South African variant virus, but the virus was genetically different from the three people mentioned above, so mutual transmission was excluded. Xiao said that she is a "primitive" variant of the South African virus. In addition, she was diagnosed with fewer antibodies and viruses on admission. It is possible that she may have contracted the virus in her place of origin. However, the patients in the neighboring rooms of her quarantine hotel were infected with the British variant virus. . The Kennedy Filipino domestic helper stayed in the community for at least 6 days. He believes that it cannot be ruled out that the community has more than one chain of transmission of the South African variant virus.
The HKU team also determined that the Indian male has the same gene as the Tung Chung Filipino domestic helper virus. Professor Yuan Guoyong of the Department of Microbiology at HKU said that the Indian male was infected first from the time of the illness. It may be infected in the hotel or in the middle or through several people. To the Filipino servants, there may be another invisible source of infection that has not been discovered to them. He believes that there has been community transmission of the variant virus strain in Hong Kong, while the South African strain may be more infectious.
News (18)
Yuan Guoyong advocates sampling to review test results
Yuan believes that the incident is reflected in the leakage of entry prevention and quarantine measures. In addition to leaks in hotels and border inspections, the level of outsourced laboratories is also affected. "Is the sampling done well? Or whether there are false positives or false positives in the inspection. Negative?" He said that new measures are needed to reduce false negatives and false positives, including on-site inspections outsourced to test contractors’ laboratories, and sampling review of negative results from contractors’ laboratory tests.
News (19)
Facilitate antibody testing for those arriving in Hong Kong after quarantine
Yuan Guoyong also said that the current large-scale detection of foreign domestic helpers cannot replace fast and multi-layered tracking to find the starting point of the spread chain. He proposed that all arriving people who have recently completed quarantine should be required to take blood tests for antibodies, especially those related to Ramada hotels. If those with antibodies are found, the chain of transmission must be traced and contacts must be quarantined. Otherwise the variant virus will spread quickly. A comprehensive inspection of foreign domestic helpers may not be able to cut the chain of transmission.
Xu Shuchang, chair professor of the Department of Respiratory System at CUHK, also said that there may be problems with the sampling and testing of the hotel quarantine earlier. Antibodies should be tested for immigrants and hotel staff who were previously tested negative to understand the number of infected persons, especially in each room after March. Everyone at Ramada has to test.
The Department of Health replied that in order to ensure the quality of sampling, there are provisions in the contract that require the contractor to meet the quality, and that any abnormality in the laboratory must be notified immediately. The department stated that it would monitor the contractor and follow up accordingly.
News (20) to (21) / Reporter : Chen Yiling, TVBS / Translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News (20)
Severe infections, "footprints across 5 counties and cities"! Epidemic enters Taiwanese communities
The China Airlines pilots' epidemic situation continues to expand, and even the Novotel hotel quarantined has also fallen.
The footprints of the four infected hotel employees alone are all over Taipei, Xinbei, Sanchong, Taoyuan, Yunlin and the 5 counties and cities in Chiayi have a very large area of influence.
Regarding this, Su Yifeng, a thoracic medicine physician in Beijing Union Medical College, said worriedly, "The epidemic is now entering the Taoyuan community!" The local store in Zhongli, Taoyuan, urgently disinfected.
The command center announced on 1 May 2021 (1) the footprints of female employees in the catering department (Case 1127), male housekeeping employees (Case 1128), and female housekeeping employees in their 60s (Case 1129), including Taipei Main Station and Taoyuan Stores around Zhongli, Alishan in Chiayi, Fenqihu Old Street, Yunlin Daitian Temple and Chaotian Temple. The male housekeeper (Case 1120) went to Xinbei Sanchong Station (A2) and Airport Hotel Station (A14a) for 7 days, and traveled across many counties and cities.
In addition, the command center spokesperson Zhuang Renxiang said frankly that the male housekeeper in the hotel (Case 1120) is in severe illness and is still undergoing intubation treatment. The other two pilots who had been quarantined at Novotel's home (Case 1079, Case 1122), Severe pneumonia also appeared. Novotel Hotel personnel were all evacuated.
In this regard, Su Yifeng pointed out on Facebook that 3 of the confirmed cases of the China Airlines epidemic are already severely ill, with a severe illness rate of as high as 15%, “If the epidemic breaks out, the medical system will be paralyzed. Vaccines can prevent the occurrence of severe illness."
Regarding the expanding wave of China Airlines epidemic, Su Yifeng said that there is no such thing as "the epidemic may have entered the community", "the epidemic has now entered the Taoyuan community!" Although the Taiwanese's epidemic prevention is vigilant, she is worried about the epidemic.
News (21)
Three possible major breaches in epidemic prevention in Taoyuan
In addition, the command centre determined that the source came from pilots arriving from foreign airports into Taiwan causing another wave of the epidemic. There may be three major breaches.
Firstly, the Novotel Hotel provides domestic and foreign pilots quarantine. Generally speaking, residents have diverse identities and are not easy to control. Secondly, the staff of the hotel are not diverted. Thirdly, the employees still work as usual when they show symptoms. The above 3 breaches may be the reason for the expanding epidemic.
News (22)
Sellin: CCP's PLA patent application for covi hybrid
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : Inventors of covi hybrid (Twitter Screenshot)
Dr, Lawrence Sellin, an international pharmaceutical research expert, has shared with readers on Twitter about a patent application by a research team of the Institute of Military Veterinary Medicine, Academy of Military Science (AMMS) of the CCP's People's Liberation Army (PLA). The patent application is a covi hybrid comprised of SARS-CoV-2 and H5N1 influenza virus.
The patent application is filed with CCP's intellectual property office on 2 July 2020 in Changchun. Application Number 202010634071.2. This record shows that the CCP is still conducting research on future possible human infectious diseases.
Many people suspect that SARS-CoV-2 was developed in the Wuhan Institute of Viology as a bioweapon which causes the human infectious disease covid.
Below are screenshots from Dr. Lawrence Sellin's Twitter.
News (23) to (35) / Host : Li Dayu / Publisher : Dayu News Insider / https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2021/05/01/a103108751.html / Extract translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Images : Video Screenshots
News (23)
Beijing wants to build a virus laboratory, boldly subordinates "worry" Xi Jinping
The CCP does some things that are hard to accept. At first, everyone was disgusted with the virus. According to the news on 28 April, the China Science and Technology Innovation Park in Changping District, Beijing, will also build a "biopharmaceutical factory", including a "virus laboratory", which will conduct research on viruses, bacteria, fungi and other pathogenic microorganisms. This caused serious concerns among the local people, who had to take to the streets to protest and raise banners saying that they were firmly opposed to the establishment of a biopharmaceutical factory.
In the mainland, everyone may not say anything, but they all have deep doubts about the laboratory in Wuhan. Now that another laboratory is being built in Beijing, can you not be afraid? Moreover, the location of this new biopharmaceutical plant is near an important diversion channel that provides drinking water to Beijingers. If any leakage occurs, it is very dangerous.
This really corresponds to the phrase "loyalty and cleanliness worry" that a certain place in the mainland expressed loyalty to Xi Jinping. Why should we worry about loyalty and cleanliness? It is actually unfaithful and unclean. This sentence is obviously wrong, it should be "responsible", but this "misunderstanding" may be true over the word "responsible".
Under the CCP’s rule, many things are worrying, not only the ordinary people, but even if you have a certain social background, you also have to worry.
News (24)
India surpasses 380,000 new covid cases a day
India is the first to bear the brunt of the current epidemic tsunami. India is now relatively hotter and hot, but the explosive growth of the epidemic is still occurring, which shows the terrible nature of this CCP virus.
In the face of the raging epidemic in India, the United States announced on the one hand that it would follow the disease control recommendations and restrict the entry of Indian flights from midnight on 4 May , Eastern time, except for U.S. citizens and permanent residents and those with special exemption qualifications. No one from India can re-enter the United States. Before Trump sealed the Chinese Communist Party, wow, this American leftist was very lively at the time. He also talked about Trump's regional discrimination and various unfavorable consequences. As a result, Biden is doing this now and there is no sound.
News (25)
More than 40 countries aid India
On the other hand, the United States has also provided medical equipment reinforcements to India. The first batch of materials have been transported to India by military transport aircraft, including oxygen cylinders, pulse oximetry equipment, and diagnostic equipment worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Including the United States, more than forty countries in the world have provided medical supplies to India.
Correspondingly, the CCP also said to aid India before, but after talking about the supplies, it disappeared. Instead, the CCP’s Sichuan Airlines stopped at least six freight and mail routes to and from India, saying that it was due to the pandemic. Isn’t this playing India?
News (26)
Vaccine production severely affected in India
What India is now experiencing is the worst and most terrifying outbreak recorded in the world since the outbreak of the CCP virus, except for China. As of the data released on Friday, April 30, the number of cases in India in the past 24 hours has continued to climb, with more than 386,000 new cases, which is almost 390,000! Not only did it exceed 300,000 cases for the ninth consecutive day, it also created the largest single-day increase in India itself and the world. During the same period, the number of deaths also reached a new high, with 3,498 deaths in a single day.
In April alone, the total number of new cases in India reached 6.6 million, and the medical system has already been seriously overloaded. Vaccines have also been used up and vaccination has been suspended. India itself is a major producer of vaccines. Due to the impact of the epidemic, vaccine production is currently severely affected.
News (27)
The actual infection in India is 50 times more
At the same time, because of India's limited testing capabilities, the true number of infections is considered to be a serious underestimation. Experts previously said it was 30 times underestimated. Now the scientific team of the Indian government has shown that the number of possible true infections is 50 times the current number! This estimate is actually a bit scary, because now the total number of confirmed diagnoses in India has reached more than 18 million. If you zoom in by 50 times, the actual number of infected people may be more than 900 million, far more than half of the population of India. This is a very scary data model. .
It's just that many people have no symptoms. And they also estimated that India’s cases may reach a peak on May 3, 4, and 5 next week, but this is only an estimate. Whether it can reach the peak and then fall back as soon as possible, we must continue to pay attention to the dynamics of the epidemic.
At the same time, the number of deaths due to the epidemic has also greatly increased, and it is likely that there are still incomplete statistics. American media reported on April 29 that the stacking speed of corpses in Indian crematoriums is much faster than cremation. It also mentioned that a crematorium in the Indian capital of Delhi, in normal times, crematorium only cremates 8 to 10 corpses a day. At present, the crematorium has reached 100 to 120 per day, and the scale of the crematorium has also been forced to expand to the parking lot, and the cremation facility is temporarily built with masonry. This is just the situation in the crematorium.
A report gave a detail. A young woman in India had her mother contracted the disease and died. Her father, husband, and sister also became ill and are undergoing treatment.
News (28)
Japanese cruise ship covid infection
At present, the number of cases in India's neighboring countries is also on the rise. I introduced it to you in the live broadcast on Wednesday night. In neighbouring countries such as Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, the epidemic in India has reached new highs recently. The variant strains from India have spread to Japan, the United States and China.
Japan is going to host the Olympics and is even more nervous about the epidemic. Last year, Japan broke out a serious cluster infection on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Now another luxury cruise ship in Japan, "Asuka 2", also broke a new case. At that time, the cruise ship was on the sea and has already returned urgently, preparing to disembark all passengers.
News (29)
New variant strain P1 from Brazil
The current variant strain in India is currently considered to be one of the reasons for the outbreak. Brazil now has a variant of the Chinese Communist Party virus called P1, which is also found to be very dangerous. It is up to 140% more virulent than all known variants in Brazil. It can bypass part of the immune system and re-infect people who have been infected, and the fatality rate is twice as high as that of the previous strain. The speed of virus change now is much faster than the speed at which humans develop vaccines.
News (30)
Variant strain from India entered Zhoushan, 11 inbound cases
As we mentioned earlier, a variant strain from India has also appeared in China. On 29 April, the Chinese Communist Party officially notified that 11 cases had been found in Zhejiang Province, 10 of which were infected with the Indian variant. The Chinese Communist Party officially called these cases "imported cases", but some netizens called them "virus home". An important reason is that these cases are all from the crew of a freighter in "Zhejiang Zhoushan". At the beginning of the outbreak of the virus in Wuhan, some experts believed that the virus was suspected of containing viral components from bats in Zhoushan, Zhejiang.
News (31)
The Golden Week should not become a "variant Golden Week"
This time the virus "counter-attacked the mainland" coincides with the mainland’s "May 1st holidays". A large number of Chinese travelled out. The mainland epidemic prevention expert Wu Zunyou has reminded that the epidemic in India is rising sharply, and some Asian countries are also recovering. He called on people to pay attention and he mentioned that "partial cities" in China have detected the virus strains circulating in India, indicating that the Indian variant of the Chinese Communist virus may not only be found in Zhejiang.
So some people worry that this Golden Week should not become a "variant Golden Week". According to current statistics, the number of Chinese travellers in this Golden Week may be overwhelming. It may be more than the 2019 Golden Week before the plague. There were 195 million people in that year. This time it may reach 200 million people! Perhaps people were suffocated during the plague blockade, and they all wanted to breathe, but they also happened to catch up with the counterattack of the mutant virus.
News (32)
Politician in the late Qing Dynasty predicted the ending of the CCP
And now the CCP has tightened its governance over the people. The high-level leaders have whitewashed the Cultural Revolution in party history textbooks, and in some places the madness of letting students dance the loyalty dance is recurring. This is both accelerated totalitarianism and apocalyptic madness.
At the end of the Qing Dynasty, there was a famous political scientist in China named "Zheng Xiaoxu". He once said, "The Qing Dynasty died in the Republic, the Republic died in the communist, and the communist died in the co-management. The first two sentences have been fulfilled, and the last sentence may be coming soon. So what is "co-management"?
News (33)
Xi Jinping would fight for hegemony in the United States long ago
Everyone may have different understandings, but when I saw this word, I remembered that Xi Jinping’s so-called new era of magic vocabulary "global governance" may be the pace of extinction under the acceleration of the CCP’s ambitions.
The CCP is now dragging a broken aircraft carrier with a virus full of viruses, and is about to divide the world cake with the United States. The Epoch Times recently exclusively exposed a speech by Xi Jinping 4 years ago, showing that he wants to be in the field of "new media" Compete with the United States for the right to speak, and recruit overseas talents for use by the CCP.
For example, he mentioned that Trump won the 2016 election. The ability of new media should not be underestimated. Therefore, Xi Jinping declared that he will strictly control new media, cultivate red Vs, promote the CCP, and also attract overseas Chinese or foreign high-end talents. Used by the Communist Party. In fact, the Communist Party has been doing this in practice in recent years.
News (34)
British media called Taiwan "the most dangerous", Tsai Ing-wen: Ability to manage risks
The most noticeable aspect of the CCP’s current ambitions is the Taiwan Strait. The famous British "The Economist" magazine put a map of Taiwan on the cover of the latest issue, followed by the power of the Chinese Communist Party on one side and the United States on the other. "Strategic ambiguity" will make the Taiwan Strait likely to break out of conflict and become the most dangerous place on the surface. In the article, they also reminded the United States that if the United States avoids conflict with the CCP and does not send troops to the Taiwan Strait at a critical moment, then no global allies will trust the United States anymore, and the governance of the United States will collapse.
Some people in Taiwan are not cold about this and think that foreigners are nervous about helping, but Taiwanese people are not too worried about the CCP’s habitual intimidation.
But the Taiwan government is also more vigilant about this. In response to the new cover of The Economist, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen responded on April 30: The Taiwanese government is absolutely capable of controlling various possible risks and establishing a security barrier for Taiwan. The day before, Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Wu Zhaoxie also said to foreign media: If the CCP violates Taiwan by force, Taiwan will fight to the end.
However, like the analysis of the quotations from our program yesterday, the United States would prefer to see Taiwan itself make sufficient efforts to prepare for the defense against invasion, including the establishment of sufficient reserves and the establishment of multiple defense mechanisms. This means that the West may hope to use Taiwan’s own defense. At the same time, a plan of military support was added. Therefore, from this point of view, Taiwan’s own armed forces and their determination to resist aggression may have to give the world a little more confidence. But at the same time, we also hope that there will be no such crisis in the Taiwan Strait, and the CCP must withdraw from the stage of history as soon as possible.
News (35)
Indonesian submarine sunk into three pieces, caused by "mysterious force"
Earlier in April, an Indonesian submarine suddenly lost contact during an exercise. After several days of intense search and rescue, it was found that the submarine had sunk long ago and its body was broken into three pieces. All the 53 soldiers on it were killed. The incident shocked the world. At present, further investigations have been made on the cause of the accident.
According to a report by Nikkei Asia, the shipwreck that occurred near Bali was caused by an invisible huge force in the ocean. This mysterious force dragged the Indonesian navy submarine to the bottom of the sea within a few seconds. The submarine could not resist at all, resulting in the eventual death.
So, what is this "mysterious power", is it a prehistoric "megalodon"? Megalodon is said to be "prehistoric" and existed about 23 million years ago, but in fact, some scientists even believe that megalodon is not extinct and still exists today. This shark can reach up to 20 meters in length, which is much larger than many whales.
Although megalodons are still alive only theoretically by some scientists, it has indeed been discovered in recent years that megalodon species that have existed on the seabed for at least 180 million years have been found. In the summer of 2019, a team of marine ecologists from Florida in the United States sent a submarine survey in the deep sea of the Bahamas and accidentally discovered a giant shark about eight meters in length, named bluntnose sixgill shark. The submarine that the researchers took was only four meters long, and seeing the picture was enough to scare people. Fortunately, the shark did not attack the submarine at that time.
So back to the topic of the sinking submarine in Indonesia, could it be the work of a bluntnose sixgill shark? The current investigators’ preliminary understanding is not so. They believe that it is another invisible "monster" in the sea called "internal solitary waves". It is caused by the difference between the density of the Bali island and the surrounding sea. The strength of the "internal solitary wave" is astonishing enough to drag the submarine to the bottom of the sea in a short time. The crew will be powerless and have no chance to do any self-rescue. Before the accident, they may have experienced a terrible roll in the submarine. At present, this is only a preliminary conclusion, and the investigation is still ongoing.
This accidental submarine has also been in service for 42 years and belongs to the elder of the submarine. The new weapon research will definitely consider dealing with various factors, but it is really a great achievement to be able to make a high-precision weapon, because the factors to be overcome are really too great. too much. If a detail is wrong, it may make a joke, or even very dangerous.
News (36) to (37) / Reports by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News (36)
Spotted wood owls in Singapore
Source : 8world / Image : Web Screenshot (Source: Facebook/Angela Ng)
A small spotted wood owl appeared in Singapore on 1 May 2021, attracting many people and photography enthusiasts to look around the tree.
Netizen Angela Ng posted a post in the Facebook group of Nature Society (Singapore), without revealing the exact location of the little owl. She said that she found a group of people around a tree yesterday morning. At that time, a little owl was struggling on the low trunk and wanted to climb to a place to rest. Its parents watched the child nervously from a higher place. .
However, the crowd moved closer and closer to the trees to take pictures, and some even went under the trees. Some people had to ask them to step back and keep a certain distance.
According to the netizen, the little owl later found a nest on a low branch. Staff from the National Park Service also came to surround the tree and drove the crowd to a place 20 meters away.
Angela calls on all nature lovers and photographers to observe quietly and appreciate nature from a distance instead of being overly excited.
"When you get close to the little owl, you will put pressure on it, and at the same time put yourself in danger, because its parents may turn around and attack you in order to protect the little owl."
Some netizens expressed the hope that the organization can suggest to the authorities that the authorities can limit the time and number of onlookers after the nest is discovered, which can protect wild creatures and ensure that the public has a safe distance, especially now that there is more reason to keep a safe distance.
It is reported that the species of this owl is the spotted wood owl. According to the National Park Service, this owl has a unique "earless" head and a bold black striped lower body. It is the largest owl species in Singapore.
Spotted wood owl is a critically endangered bird, the number is about 22, it is difficult to find. It is generally found in forests and woodlands, but sometimes appears near the water.
This type of owl is first discovered in Singapore in December 1985 in the forest of the central catchment area, and traces of it have been found in other areas.
News (37)
Two otter cubs left the family for eight days, help rendered to reunite with their family
Image : Web Screenshot (Source : Facebook /Ottercity)
Two otter cubs were found separated from their families in Changi. Otter observers cooperated with various parties and spent eight days searching for traces of their otter family, and finally helped them reunite with their family.
Ottercity, an organization that cares for otters, has serialized "Otters Seeking Relatives" on their Facebook homepage at noon yesterday (1st).
Someone found two three-month-old otter cubs in Changi a week ago. Ottercity believes that they are in the same family as two adult otters and one more otter cub, but the other three otters are missing. The post pointed out that if they are too long away from the group, the family may eventually reject the two cubs.
They were taken to the Care of Animal Research (ACRES) Wildlife Rescue Center for care. At the same time, otter observers in Pasir Ris, Punggol, and the east coast, along with staff from the National Parks Baord and Changi Airport Group, are conducting searches along the coastline every day. "But where are they? Mangroves, sandflies, restricted access areas, and the hot sun all made this search very challenging."
Although they have encountered other otter families in Pasir Ris and other areas, they have ruled out the possibility. Volunteers even mobilized extra manpower to launch a temporary special operation due to the discovery of two adult otters in Changi on the evening of Friday (30 April), and hurriedly took two cubs to the discovery site.
They eventually found four otters—not only an additional couple of otters, but the female otters’ nipples were not obvious and did not fit the characteristics of a female otter with three cubs.
Fortunately, this movement prompted two large and one small three otters to show up. They are the families of the two cubs.
"Although the lack of light at night and the agile movements of the otters make it difficult for the volunteers to move, everyone is determined to accomplish this and stand guard to prevent them from escaping."
At 8.30 pm on 30 April, the volunteers opened the cage door and the two cubs ran out. The mother otter bit their necks, and the family was finally reunited.
The post also thanked the otter observers for their teamwork and patience, as well as the Changi Airport Group, the National Parks Board, the Association of Caring Animal Researchers, and the Otter Working Group for their assistance.
Ottercity added that in the morning of the second day of reunion (1 May), the otter family was found swimming together, "The ending is sweet."
News (38)
Can the new CDC prevent CCP China from repeating the epidemic?
Host : Yan Xi / https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2021/05/02/a103108896.html / Extract translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
Recently, China's new infectious disease prevention and control agency, the National Disease Control and Prevention Board officially unveiled. Wang Hesheng, former deputy director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, became the director. Will the establishment of new statutory board prevent China from repeating the epidemic?
The newly established National Disease Control and Prevention Board, referred to as the Board of Disease Control and Prevention, is different from the original China CDC short for the China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The National Health Commission, and the newly established National Disease Control and Prevention Board, is a disease control department independent of the National Health Commission. It is at the deputy ministerial level and is higher than the National Health Commission. It also implements civil service management. This is the administrative management agency.
Zhong Nanshan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that the covid epidemic has exposed the shortcomings of the CCP’s public health system.
Well, the problem has arisen. How will this new organization find and solve the problem effectively, and what can the deputy ministerial level do more than the director-general level with regard to people's health issues?
Let's first look at the first question, how to simplify the link and effectively solve the problem.
Zhong Nanshan said that the epidemic has exposed the shortcomings of escalating reporting and delaying time. However, according to the CDC report, since the SARS crisis, the CCP has realized that medical institutions at all levels and various types cannot report in a timely manner. , Is the key to causing the epidemic to get out of control. Therefore, they have established a direct network reporting system with wide coverage, vertical to the bottom, horizontal to the side, horizontal to the provinces, cities and regions, and vertical to all levels of the unit from top to bottom.
Hubei Economic TV News: "China has built the largest infectious disease epidemic and a direct online reporting system for public health emergencies. The time for epidemic information to be discovered from the grassroots level to the National Disease Control and Prevention Board has been shortened from five days to four hours."
According to reports, as of the end of 2006, the direct reporting network has covered 100% of disease control centers, 95% of county-level and above medical and health institutions, and 70% of township health centers across the country. In other words, before the outbreak of the new crown virus, China's domestic infectious disease reporting procedures were very simple and fast. It stands to reason that once there is a report, the central management department will know immediately.
Zhou Xianwang, the former Mayor of Wuhan, said, “As a local government, I can only disclose this information after I have obtained it and authorized it. I can only disclose it after I have been authorized.”
This is Zhou Xianwang, the former mayor of Wuhan. In the early stage of the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, he said that he had to wait for authorization to disclose information. Therefore, it is obvious that the key to the delayed prevention and control of the epidemic is not in the reporting link, but in the above Authorization link.
Moreover, according to the 2005 revised edition of China's Law on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, which is the revised edition after SARS, corresponding clauses can indeed be found, including SARS, sudden and unexplained infectious diseases and Class A infectious diseases, which must be reported to the State Council. Only after approval can it be published and implemented.
Former Beijing lawyer Lai Jianping said, "Then the top leader above wants to create a scene of singing and dancing to serve his political interests, so he conceals it. After the concealment, it can't be controlled. There is really no way. The people all over the world announced. The prevention and control of infectious diseases in China is not a technical problem, not a medical problem, it is a government problem, an autocratic government."
Zhong Nanshan said that the new organization will effectively discover and solve problems. So here comes the second question. Although the newly established statutory board has been raised to the deputy ministerial level, it sounds more powerful in terms of functions, but don’t forget that it still hasn’t jumped out of the scope of the CCP government, which means, Still face the old problem of waiting for authorization to be approved. So can the establishment of a new institution really solve the problem of timely prevention and control of the epidemic?
Former Beijing lawyer Lai Jianping said, "If Gaofu's CDC knows about (infectious diseases), then it can report directly to the State Council and the Party Central Committee. Now you just have to change to a new organization and people like him will report it. So the procedures and links are the same No matter how many organizations you create, you will change the soup instead of the medicine."
The China CDC is established in 2002. The purpose of this organization is to detect and control epidemics. When SARS broke out, in the face of accusations, the CCP used the so-called delay in reporting as an excuse to justify the establishment. The direct reporting system gives people the illusion that there will be no such mistakes in the future, thus trying to avoid the responsibility of negligence. When the epidemic broke out this time, although reports of unknown infectious diseases had already been received, it was because of the so-called authorization issue that caused the epidemic to get out of control.
Amidst the condemnation of the world, the CCP once again tried to pass the report on the grounds of cumbersome epidemic reporting to establish a new prevention and control agency to transfer or weaken the condemnation. According to this rule, if a more terrible virus emerges next time, should the CCP establish another, better-level direct reporting system?
Under the CCP, which always prioritizes the maintenance of the regime, can such a direct reporting system really solve the problem? Leave it to everyone to judge for themselves.
News (39)
Mongolia to allow vaccinated Mongolians to resume domestic travel from 5 May 2021
Source : Montsame
Mongolia's State Emergency Commission convened virtually on 29 April 2021. During the meeting, the commission members received the latest updates regarding the measures being taken against SARS-CoV-2 infection, vaccination rollout, and its procurement and delivery as well as works planned to be conducted in early May.
With about 40 percent of the nationwide target group having been vaccinated so far, a decision was made to intensify vaccination works in 21 aimags of Mongolia from 10 May 2021, and urgently involve target group citizens in rural areas in the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Furthermore, citizens living near border checkpoints are projected to be fully vaccinated by 10 May.
The SEC has also decided to allow fully vaccinated citizens to participate in inter-city traffic movement 14 days after receiving their second dose of vaccines, which will be in effect from 5 May 2021.
As for measures regarding the resumption of normal operations for international travel and freight as well as the opening of borders, it was decided to have the matter discussed at the Cabinet meeting.
On 1 May 2021, Mongolia reports an increase of 1306 confirmed covid cases with a total number of 37,285 confirmed covid cases and 115 fatalities. About 90 percent of the new cases are close contacts of previously confirmed cases.
News (40)
Bhutan Foreign Minister: India assured support for second dose of vaccine
Source : Kuensel
The Bhutanese government is positive that Bhutanese who received the first dose of the vaccine, AstraZeneca, will receive the second dose as per the schedule — eight to 12 weeks after the first dose.
With India fighting a highly contagious and lethal second wave of the pandemic and reporting a shortage of vaccine for its own citizens, many at home are concerned if Bhutan would get the second dose.
The first dose was administered in a campaign mode between March 27 and April 4. About 467,000 (more than 80 percent of the eligible adults) Bhutanese and foreigners in Bhutan were given the first shot in nine days that made headlines worldwide.
Foreign Minister Dr Tandi Dorji, said that the Indian government has assured their support to Bhutan in terms of getting the second dose of the Covishield vaccine.
Lyonpo said that the assurance also came from the Indian foreign secretary during a meeting with the Bhutanese ambassador to India, last week. “Even with the current unfortunate situation in India, we are hopeful they would support us because with the first dose, we are only half protected.”
He however, said that the question was that if India could supply the vaccines all at once. “We still have a month and half for the second dose to begin and in the meantime, we are exploring other avenues as well.”
Other options
The COVAX Facility is the most realistic option when it comes to vaccines for Bhutan. The cabinet last week approved and signed the documents that were required to access the facility.
Until the recent bilateral assistance from India, Bhutan’s only access to the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine was through the COVAX Facility. COVAX is one of three pillars of the Access to Covid-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which was launched in April 2020 by the WHO, the European Commission and France in response to the pandemic.
As a member of the Facility, Bhutan would receive free vaccines for 20 percent of its population under the initiative. The Facility has allocated 108,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine and about 5,900 doses of the Pfizer vaccine for Bhutan.
Besides receiving the free vaccines from the Facility, Lyonpo Tandi Dorji said that the government had also submitted a request to COVAX to purchase vaccines through the Facility.
Last month, the COVAX Facility had launched its cost-sharing modality, making it possible for members to purchase Covid-19 vaccines through the Facility.
However, Lyonpo said that with the increasing global demand for vaccines, the COVAX Facility itself was not able to meet its minimum requirement to cover the 20 percent coverage, for now.
The government has also ordered some 200,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine from Pfizer Inc., the American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. Lyonpo said because Pfizer for now was the only vaccine approved for children between the age groups of 12-17 years, to ensure vaccine coverage for a larger population, the decision was made.
“Since we have a large population of young people, we need to cover these groups to achieve herd immunity, which is approximately about 70 percent of the entire population,” he said.
Lyonpo added that the government was also considering the procurement of the AstraZeneca vaccine from South Korea, Thailand and Australia, which have now started to produce the vaccine besides India’s Serum Institute. He said, “The foreign ministry is keeping a close eye on this and have asked all our missions (offices in foreign countries) to start the channel of communication so that whenever possible, we can get some vaccines from these countries as well.”
Health Minister Dechen Wangmo said that for now the access to vaccines was a major challenge globally. Lyonpo said that during a recent tri-patriate meeting with WHO, UNICEF and the health ministry, the discussion was on the quantity of the vaccine Bhutan could procure.
Lyonpo said that although COVAX has allocated 108,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine for Bhutan, the ministry for now has not received any definite date of shipment. “We are pursuing COVAX’s cost-sharing option and once it is finalised, it would be submitted to the cabinet for approval.”
Prime Minister Dr Lotay Tshering said in the light of the growing global demand for vaccines, the country was exploring all possible options. “In terms of money, we don’t have any issues. But I don’t mean to say that we have enough money,” Lyonchhen said. “For all covid-related issues, we have clear instruction from His Majesty. His Majesty has said that we can spend whatever amount is needed, and that it would come from the King’s treasury.”
Lyonchhen added that although the country has made reservations for the Pfizer vaccine, the production capacity was not able to meet the demand for now. He said that by the end of the year, Pfizer would produce around 2 billion (B) doses but the demand was already over 4B.
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