As the world welcomes the approval by the United Kingdom government and its health authority of Pfizer-BionNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine, a significant act of statesmanship has slipped through the crack. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision to give the go-ahead following recommendations of the independent Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) was bold and decisive.
The deputy chief health officer sobered expectations by openly admitting that while the vaccine showed great promise, Covid-19 wasn’t going to go away or, as in President Donald Trump’s view, vanish. This was to be expected, given that in fast-tracking a possible solution to restraining the spread of the pandemic, many of the established protocols have been sidetracked.
In the United States, Moderna has applied for government approval both in its country and Europe for its vaccine that has the same constraints. That Russia and China have quickly followed suit in launching their versions was also expected. That’s what politics is about. Bangladesh had stated that it has ordered the first vaccine to be available, but it is Indonesia that got 1.8 million doses of the Chinese version.
Johnson has left the EU miffed and the German chancellor bristling. The EU sees it as timed to force its hands on the Brexit issue. Merkel is fuming at the role of Germany’s BionTech not being given due recognition. Yet, it isn’t by chance that both the FDA in the US and authorities in the EU continue taking their time over approvals. Dr Anthony Fauci initially decried the British for overlooking caution in fast-tracking its decision. Then he tried to smooth over the impact of his comment by what can best be termed as grudging condescension.
The maverick that he is, Johnson has put his country first by approving Pfizer’s vaccine ahead of the British AstraZeneca one. With that, the prospect of reaching millions in countries less blessed with the resources of modern science is effectively on hold for the time being. The Chinese had offered their vaccine for Bangladesh, and India was offered the AstraZeneca one, in which Indian scientists were also involved.
But what comes as a sucker-punch is that President Trump has signed an executive order prioritizing the Pfizer vaccine for the United States. This has obviously triggered crisis communications for the company. A bewildered CEO of Pfizer has stated that while it offered the vaccine to the US, it had also committed the same to other countries that he did not name. There have been sketchy media reports of rich countries advance-buying millions of doses of the vaccine that can only exacerbate the crying needs of lesser developed countries.
The World Health Organization can do little but to appeal for equitable distribution. The United Nations secretary general hasn’t announced any diversion of funds to what is a world priority from the important but lower priority programs. With the world reeling over rising debt, this isn’t a great moment for charity. Almost every country has prioritized vaccine queues, with the most vulnerable and front-liners in pole position.
Our prime minister has instructed accordingly, and the government paid in advance for vaccines. Sheikh Hasina has repeated in different forums an appeal for assistance in getting the 240 million doses that we require. The latest developments make it unlikely to immunize the entire population anytime soon.
Infectious disease specialists have sounded caution of the longer term side-effects that may emerge from the use of the vaccine. For now, scientific protocols have been defied to meet health, political, and popular expectations. We’re clutching at the proverbial straw, but that’s the best option open. Meanwhile, the pandemic continues to change form, the body-bag count rises alarmingly, and the dichotomy over resuming a semblance of normalcy continues at state and individual levels.
Mahmudur Rahman is a writer, columnist, broadcaster, and communications specialist.
