[imagesource:here]

And so it begins…

Thankfully, it appears that the four Dis-Chem employees who have been arrested for allegedly selling fraudulent vaccine certificates were operating as part of an isolated incident.

The pharmacy retailer said that temporary staff were hired to assist at the pharmacy’s Krugersdorp President Square vaccination site.

Four people, two men and two women all aged between 19 and 36, were arrested last week and appeared in court on charges of fraud on Monday.

IOL reports:

[Spokesperson for the police in Krugersdorp, Captain Raymond] Sebonyane said Dis-Chem Pharmacies opened a criminal case against the four staffers after it noticed a discrepancy at the vaccine site after a member of the public was allegedly charged R100 for a vaccination card…

Dis-Chem CEO Ivan Saltzmam said they acted swiftly when they picked up a discrepancy during their routine daily balancing of vaccines doses to stock and the Electronic Vaccination Data System system.

“We did not hesitate to act as soon as this was brought to our attention as it is most upsetting to see that a small number of individuals felt they could take advantage of the vaccine roll-out drive.”

After the complaint came from Dis-Chem’s head office, police commissioned an investigation into discrepancies at the vaccination site.

According to an announcement last Friday by Dr Joe Phaahla, our minister of health, all vaccinated South Africans will be eligible for a digital vaccination certificate by the end of this week.

It’s unclear whether that timeline will be correct (it rarely is with our government), but this alleged fraud is an indicator that a better system of verification is needed.

This from Business Insider SA:

The seemingly imminent arrival of domestic vaccine passports in South Africa – which science advisors say could be used from early November – have raised fears that an industry will emerge to help create fake proof of vaccinations.

The government has not yet detailed its plans for electronic vaccine certificates, but those are likely to include online checking mechanisms and the ability to revoke certificates. Such electronic certificates would be linked to entries on the EVDS.

For those who do not have smartphones or internet access, Dr Phaahla said paper certificates would be available.

Sourcing and buying fake vaccine certificates? Amazing that people will go through all of this trouble, just to avoid getting a jab that could help save their lives.

[sources:iol&businsidersa]