Covaxin, India's indigenous Covid-19 vaccine has become the center point for the biggest medical scam ever in Brazil.
The names of the President of Brazil Bolsanaro and the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are also brought into picture with various suspicions by the Parliamentary commission of inquiry (CPI) in Brazil.
"Suspecting corruption in the deal, the senators are now treating it like a scandal as they sniff the money trail in the 1.6 billion reals ($300 million) contract for 20 million doses, the most expensive deal made by this country with each dose costing $15", mentions The Wire in its long story that exposed the ins and outs of this alleged scam.
As per the sources from the capital city of Brazil, the investigation is happening to reveal who paid 100 Million USD to the company that has facilitated the negotiation between Brazilian government and Bharat Biotech in India. This amount was one third of the total amount as per the documents procured by the Parliamentary Panel.
Keeping this alleged scandal aside, not even a single dose of Covaxin was jabbed to any of the Brazilian citizens so far.
Senator Calheiros says, “It was the only acquisition for which President Bolsonaro made a phone call to the prime minister of India Narendra Modi. It was an indication of the president’s preference despite many problems with the vaccine. And it was approved by the Chamber of Deputies as a bill that authorised the purchase of vaccines directly by businessmen. These are things that in all respects seem scandalous".
Now more than 1,00,000 people came out on the streets of Sao Paulo on the 19th of June to protest against the government of Brazil with regard to this vaccination scandal. The situation in the country is so bad that the new cases and the daily deaths are alarming. The tears of the people are becoming an ocean of anger now.
The people in Brazil are questioning why such a highly expensive deal was set with Bharat Biotech using the public money, for Covaxin (world's most expensive Covid-19 vaccine) which wasn't approved by WHO or at least even the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA).
The burgeoning anger of the public against Bolsonaro's government is because of its attitude towards the much sought-after Pfizer and CoronaVac vaccines as compared to Covaxin, with a zeal to close the deal. It is implied 'something fishy' in the whole episode.
The most popular media house The Wire concludes on a valid point mentioning, "Lobbying for an expensive vaccine while denying others amid a deadly pandemic may prove to be a costly mistake for Brazil’s president".