COVID has exposed the reality of international relations – Kofi Abotsi

Dean of the Law School at the University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA), Professor Kofi Abotsi, he outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has exposed the reality of international relations.

In his view, Covid-19 has shown that globalization is a farce and only serves as an opportunism for continuing global power structures.

Whenever Africa needs the north, he said, the doors are always shut and self dependence is urged hence COVID should be an eye opener.

“COVID has exposed the reality of international relations; that globalization is a farce and only serves as an opportunism for continuing global power structures. Whenever Africa needs the north, the doors are always shut & self dependence is urged. COVID should be an eye opener,” Mr Abosti tweeted on Friday December 3.

It is recalled that President Nana Addo Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo during the celebration of the May Day this year, attributed the delay in the arrival of the second doses of coronavirus vaccines into Ghana, to among other things, international vaccine politics.

As a result, the President said, Ghana had not been able to vaccinate the number of people “as we envisaged.”

His comments came after Professor at the University of Ghana, and Director of the West African Center for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens, Gordon Akanzuwine Awandare, had also said Ghana had to wait until the United Kingdom and the United States had all vaccinated their citizens then, the West African country could go and negotiate for the leftover vaccines for its people.

Prof Awandare said at the time that there was no sign that COVID-19 vaccines in sufficient quantities would arrive in Ghana any time soon in order to inoculate the people.

He told Abena Tabi, host of the Key Points on TV3 Saturday May 1 the government of Ghana gave a 100% assurance to Ghanaians that they were going to be vaccinated against the coronavirus virus when the production of the vaccines was not in its control.

“I see that a lot of people are angry and worried and all that. Yes, you have the right to be worried because maybe the mistake from our authorities was that they over-promised when they knew that this was not within their power to deliver on time.

“We should have been more cautious and realistic with the people. Some of us were saying that let us think about July, August and let us promise the people that you will get vaccines beyond July and August.

“When the UK is fully vaccinated, when the US is fully vaccinated then we can negotiate for left over vaccines but at this point you cannot guarantee the arrival of any vaccine in any sufficient quantities from anywhere,” Prof Awandaree said.

He added “I have not seen any evidence that we have a concrete assurance that millions of vaccines will arrive anytime soon.

“So I think we have to be realistic that maybe, we were overpromised but the reality is that this is beyond the control of any African government because they don’t have the capacity to make vaccines and they are relying on others to be generous.”