“This is not a protocol but a law,” announced the Attorney General, Maneesh Gobin at the NCC on Friday 1st October. It is meant to be a compilation of the seven regulations that have been circulated since the beginning of the pandemic.
The Consolidated Regulations will soon be published in the Government Gazette. It will advise the public of the government’s impositions, their limits and penalties for infringement so as to avoid any confusion or misunderstanding. In short, it covers entry into certain institutions such as schools and hospitals, the authorisation of certain businesses to operate under certain conditions, self-containment, the quarantine period and the place where it must be carried out as well as the use of the self-testing kit, but above all, the distancing and wearing of masks, which the Attorney General has announced will be “relaxed for the practice of certain activities“. In addition, the Consolidated Regulations will include details of the vaccination of under-18s, the consent form for those eligible for the third dose, the list of 22 categories of institutions that prohibit access to unvaccinated people and those that are exempted from vaccination. There is also a notice to passengers and the public on the self-testing kits, which will be available only at the duty-free shops at the airports of Mauritius and Rodrigues, as well as at the duty-free shop at the port and at the retailers duly approved by the Ministry of Health.
Of course, any infringement will be punished either by imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or by a fine set at Rs 500,000. However, he said, “those, who have violated the laws before, will still be prosecuted for their violations of the quarantine law.”
Review of the week by Dr Jagutpal
“Since last Friday, PCR tests have revealed 702 positive cases, most of them aged between 20 and 59 years,” he revealed. Regarding the 12 deaths recorded, the minister announced that all of them had co-morbidities and only one was vaccinated. “The case of another victim of this account is under investigation to find out whether he was vaccinated with 1 or 2 doses,” he said. He explained the downward curve in the death rate by the note on the death certificate that states whether the patient died from the Covid virus or another complication.
To date, more than 68% of the general population is primo vaccinated (91% of the adult population) and 63% has received two doses (85% of the adult population). “8,063 students aged 15 to 18 have already received a first dose of Pfizer and 185 the third dose. Pregnant women are recommended to get their vaccinations in the first trimester. They can make an appointment on the hotline 141.” As for the third dose for those inoculated with Covaxin and AstraZeneca and who have already had their second dose for 6 months, he stated that “Those who were vaccinated with the Covaxin vaccine will receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine between 02 and 09 October 2021, but for those who were vaccinated with Astrazeneca, they will receive the same vaccine between 04 and 08 October. We still have this vaccine in stock. When it runs out, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be given to them.”
Bugs on the Digital Health Pass
Difficulties have been recorded on the registration on the digital version of the vaccine pass. For some who have already taken two doses, only one dose is visible on the application. Minister Jagutpal defended his colleague from the Ministry of ICT by reminding us that “this concerns the compilation of more than 800,000 citizens. To date, the data of about 700,000 citizens has been compiled and it has been done in record time. This entry takes a little time and the data will be updated as we go along.” For his part, the Attorney General, Maneesh Gobin revealed that “a hotline service will be set up to handle such complaints on the Digital Health Pass“.
