The Chief Coordinator of COVID-19 Response in the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC), Dr Agnes Mahomva, has said the law must take its course amid reports that a minister flouted COVID-19 regulations.
Reports suggest that the minister of Industry and Commerce, Dr Sekai Nzenza, last week met a delegation from India but they did not practise social distancing neither were they wearing face masks.
Dr Mahomva, however, refused to comment on Minister Nzenza’s case she said:
People have always been breaking the law even before COVID-19. People steal cattle, people steal cars, people are breaking the law all over and if anyone breaks the law, the law must take its course. Various laws are broken and people just have to comply so I can’t comment on a specific issue of someone breaking it. The law should take its course.
The meeting happens amid reports that India is experiencing an unprecedented coronavirus spread and transmission rate that has catapulted the daily new cases to about 300 000 (official figure) or 3 million (medical experts).
Official reports say India recorded 386 452 news cases on Friday last week, while deaths from COVID-19 jumped by 3 498.
Medical experts believe actual COVID-19 numbers in the world’s second densely populated nation are likely five to 10 times greater than the official tally.
It is believed that the sheer magnitude of infections in India in a short period of time suggests an ‘escape variant’ may be overwhelming any prior immunity from natural infections in those populations.
The reports that the minister flouted COVID-19 regulations are worrying and those actions put the nation at risk as there is a possibility that the ‘escape variant’ from India could have been imported.
Zimbabwe’s public health system is collapsed, therefore, has limited capacity to deal with such variants.
More: Pindula News; Nehanda Radio