Bolsonaro Refuses To Be Vaccinated And Returns To Voicing Doubts About COVID-19

Presiden Brasil Jair Bolsonaro (Sumber: Commons Wikimedia)

JAKARTA - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stated that he would not be vaccinated against COVID-19. This is the latest in a series of statements made by Bolsonaro regarding his doubts about the global vaccination program.

In a statement broadcast live on various social media platforms, the far-right leader added that it was impossible for Congress to ask Brazilians to be vaccinated. Brazil has the second highest number of deaths from COVID-19 in the world.

President Bolsonaro has for months questioned the severity of the pandemic, especially after he recovered from coronavirus infection in July. “I told you, I won't accept it. It's my right, "said Bolsonaro, quoted by Reuters on Friday, November 27.

Bolsonaro also expressed doubts over the effectiveness of wearing masks on the broadcast. He suggested there was little conclusive evidence on how effective masks were in stemming the transmission of the coronavirus.

Scientists have shown that masks prevent droplets and aerosols from flowing into the air. Meanwhile, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) emphasizes the importance of masks to prevent the spread of disease by people who have no symptoms and don't know they have the virus.

President Bolsonaro has repeatedly said that Brazilians are not required to be vaccinated when the COVID-19 vaccine is widely available. In October, he joked on Twitter that vaccinations would only be needed for his dog.

In addition, Bolsonaro also praised the unproven anti-malarial hydroxychloroquine as a more effective treatment for COVID-19. Yet WHO has removed hydroxychloroquine from large-scale treatment trials because it does not reduce the death rate in people hospitalized for the disease.

Jair Bolosnaro also tested positive for COVID-19 in July. Bolsonaro caught COVID-19 after months of thinking it was just a mild flu. Bolsonaro also released a video showing him sitting down and swallowing medicine. Bolsonaro said that the drug is hydroxychloroquine.

Before testing positive for COVID-19, Bolsonaro had given a statement to reporters at his official residence. He stood just inches from the reporters. That has added to criticism of his arrogant approach to the outbreak in Brazil, which is the worst in the world outside the US.

The vaccine is promising

When Bolsonaro refused the vaccine, various trials had shown its effectiveness. Pfizer has announced the results of a Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial which it says is 95 percent effective in preventing transmission of COVID-19, even in the elderly and not causing serious problems.

Another pharmaceutical company, Moderna, also announced that its COVID-19 vaccine is 94.5 percent effective. Advisors outside the FDA are scheduled to meet on December 10 to review Pfizer's emergency use of its vaccine.

The second pharmaceutical company, Moderna Inc is expected to seek separate approval in December for its COVID-19 vaccine. Once approval for emergency use is given, the CDC and an immunization practice advisory panel will recommend who should receive the vaccine first.

"That's amazing," Fauci said. "(The vaccine) is almost the same as what we saw from the measles (vaccine), which is 98 percent effective," Fauci said.