A Christian movement, Advocates for Christ Ghana (A4CG) is kicking against plans to make COVID-19 vaccination compulsory in the country.
The movement says while the vaccines are good, people must be encouraged to take them and allowed to voluntarily decide on that.
Speaking on Eyewitness News, the chairman of the movement, Edem Senanu said there is no basis or need for vaccination in Ghana to be made compulsory.
“It is well and good to do vaccination, and it is better to educate your population so that people they voluntarily say they want to take the vaccine, but in the context of where we find ourselves, don’t force people to take the vaccine,” he said.
He added that a compulsory vaccination programme could lead to health challenges for some persons.
As part of efforts to get more Ghanaians to vaccinate against COVID-19, government has introduced new measures at the Kotoka International Airport.
It has also announced plans to prevent the unvaccinated population from accessing certain public spaces such as stadia and entertainment event centres during the yuletide.
But Edem Senanu says data from other parts of the world does not support compulsory vaccination of people.
“We are not quite sure that people are looking at the global data and trying to analyse it per what we are seeing here in Africa so that we make an informed decision.”
“It is alright to continue vaccination, masking up, social distancing and handwashing, but it is not right to force people to get vaccines… We think that it is unfair to people who are aware of the risks involved,” he stressed.
He indicated that their arguments are based on science and not religious considerations, adding that the movement does not believe that the COVID-19 risks and threats in Ghana are high enough to warrant compulsory vaccination.
“Where exactly is the public health threat? What is the logic of arriving at this point that we are making it compulsory?” he quizzed.
