Golding pushes against vaccine mandate
Published:Tuesday | October 12, 2021 | 12:07 AM
Declaring that he was not in favour of mandatory COVID-19 shots, Opposition Leader Mark Golding has inveighed against calls for mandatory vaccination, arguing as well that the absence of indemnification by the Government or manufacturer of the vaccines would leave persons who suffered adverse reactions without protection.
“I don’t see that as possible,” Golding said on Monday during a press briefing at his West Kings House Road office.
Golding said that with more than 70 per cent of the population polled saying they were against mandatory vaccination, it was not practical or right to implement that measure.
However, Golding made it clear that he strongly believed getting vaccinated was the right thing to do.
He said that the Government should incentivise immunisation, devoid of the bureaucratic hurdles that dogged the CARE programme.
Debate on mandating vaccines has been heating up in Jamaica, with private-sector interests already laying down the gauntlet that workers should be fully vaccinated or be required to produce pricy negative PCR test results regularly. The Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association joined that throng on Sunday, saying that 98 per cent of its membership resoundingly approved the move.
As part of the arrangement to acquire vaccines, the Government has had to sign agreements protecting the manufacturers of the jabs from liability if recipients of the shots suffered adverse reactions.
While the Government has not announced a mandatory vaccine policy to date, Prime Minister Andrew Holness has hinted that the measure could be implemented soon.
Last month, the prime minister said that his administration was seeking advice from the Attorney General’s Department on navigating a vaccine mandate.
According to Golding, an immediate benefit should be given to persons upon being vaccinated that could help them put food on the table.
The opposition leader said that the approach taken by employer groups and the trade union confederation to iron out workplace vaccination procedures was the correct method to pursue.