‘Turkey abandoned to a single COVID-19 vaccine with nonproven efficacy’

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Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Health and Social Policies Commission Co-Spokesperson Dr. Samet Mengüç held a press conference at the HDP İstanbul Office today (December 15) and addressed the reporters regarding the latest situation in Turkey amid COVID-19 outbreak.

Mengüç has underlined that Turkey should not be condemned to a single vaccine, the efficacy of which is questionable.

Referring to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Dr. Mengüç has said that "the AKP and the Ministry of Health keep on insisting on their mistakes and shortcomings and ignoring warnings."

"Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the government has been insistently keeping on hiding the truths from the people, healthcare workers and the world of science and covering them up," he has protested.

"People are losing their lives, the outbreak is making people sick of living, but this government looks at the issue only as data and numbers," Dr. Mengüç has added and asked the government and the Ministry of Health "how they got the nerve to make a request for vaccines":

"Wasn't your country a rose garden? Wasn't your number of patients and deaths really low? No offense, but what were you planning to do in the face of vaccine-producing countries who say, 'Excuse us, but we we need to prioritize the countries in a worse situation'?

"Was that because you were faced with the bitter truth that you increased the number of patients from 6 thousand to 30 thousand overnight and started to show a higher number of fatalities? How did you manage to increase the number of patients from 6 thousand to 30 thousand overnight?"

'Turkey had to settle for a single vaccine'

Referring to Turkey's agreement with China to import 50 million doses of CoronaVac, a vaccine developed by the Sinovac company and is still in the third trial phase, Dr. Mengüç has protested that "Turkey has had to content itself with a single vaccine." He has also raised concerns that "the public has no information as to the background of this agreement" with China.

Arguing that "Turkey has abandoned its people to herd immunity during the outbreak", Dr. Samet Mengüç has underlined that the country "has now abandoned its people to a single vaccine, the safety and efficacy of which have not yet been scientifically proven."

Reminding his audience that Turkey has ordered 50 million doses of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine, Mengüç has noted that Turkey needs a minimum of 120 million doses of the vaccine and asked the authorities how they will procure the additional 70 million doses necessary for people.

"In its statements, the Ministry of Health refers to the domestic vaccine research as a savior while it is still in the preclinical stage.

"We once again warn the AKP and the Ministry of Health; we recommend that they should be sincere and serious and take public health seriously. Be transparent, scientific and participatory and let the world of science, not you, make the decisions," Dr. Mengüç has indicated. (DŞ/SD)