Parliament’s Health Committee asserts that the government is not being duped in any arrangement to acquire Sputnik-V for COVID-19 immunization in the country.
According to information from a Norwegian news source and subsequent communication from the Minority in Parliament, Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang-Manu has made an arrangement with middlemen to procure Sputnik-V vaccinations at inflated rates at the taxpayer’s cost.
According to the interested organisations, the acquisition also violates procurement regulations.
However, speaking on Citi FM’s Eyewitness News on Wednesday, Chairman of the Health Committee, Dr. Nana Ayew Afriyie, said that despite signing agreements with suppliers, the government is yet to receive any vaccination cargo.
He said that since the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and the acquisition of the Sputnik-V vaccinations entail the involvement of intermediaries, their actions would result in a rise in the jabs’ initial price, and worries about ‘abnormal’ pricing are unfounded.
“As a State, we have not been duped. Even if we are in critical need of vaccinations, the government’s approach is an excellent one: it is encouraging business people to enter the Sputnik V space.”
“The notion of acquiring Sputnik-V is one in which the government must demonstrate interest in order to get vaccinations from a source other than the COVAX facility. The Russian vaccine is a little different; the RDIF, which is responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of Sputnik V, prefers the employment of intermediaries, and any place that allows for intermediaries, there will undoubtedly be price variations – particularly those given by the Minority.”
