Brazil’s independent health watchdog, ANVISA, said on Sunday it was receiving a flurry of threats and called for greater protection from law enforcement as it faces increasing pressure from President Zaich Bolsonaro over its decision to grant clearance. emergency use of COVID-19 vaccines for children.
For months, ANVISA has been in the midst of a political storm in the largest Latin American country because of its key role: it is responsible for approving vaccines. The president, a far-right former captain who says he has not been vaccinated against COVID-19 and will not, has cast doubt on much of the population about the risk posed by the virus and the value of immunization.
The five ANVISA board members, all appointed by Zaich Bolsonaro, began receiving threats in October. But they multiplied this week, after the regulator authorized the use of the COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5-11.
Following the ruling, the head of state announced that he would ask for the names of the officials who gave the approval and threatened to make them public, provoking a strong reaction from the regulator.
Yesterday, ANVISA stressed that the threats increased sharply within 24 hours and added that it provides data on them to law enforcement services. He added that he would ask for police protection for its executives, who perform their duties in various parts of the country.
The authority will remain “committed to its mission to protect the health of citizens,” he assured.
The way the far-right president has handled the health crisis is considered one of the main reasons for his declining popularity this year. Polls suggest he’s going to suffer a heavy defeat in the 2022 presidential election.
The death toll from the new coronavirus pandemic in Brazil, Latin America’s largest country, now stands at 620,000 dead – 617,803 yesterday – for a total of 22.21 million infections. It is the second heaviest in the world, behind only the United States. Yesterday Sunday, the Ministry of Health announced 49 deaths of patients due to complications of COVID-19 and 1,419 cases of SARS-CoV-2, but data that is not complete, due to recent cyber attacks.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news
.
