La Voix |

Prime Minister of Chad visits kids paralyzed after taking Meningitis Vaccine

January 14, 2013 1 Comment

Usual globalist suspects are behind MenAfrivac vaccination campaign under which children were injected

By CHRISTINA ENGLAND | VACTRUTH | JANUARY 14, 2013

On January 6, 2013, I wrote an article entitled Minimum of 40 Children Paralyzed After New Meningitis Vaccine describing how at least 40 children in Gouro, Chad, located in northern Africa, became paralyzed after they had received the meningitis A vaccine, MenAfrivac. [1]

Further research about the Meningitis Vaccine Project shows the effort was a massive collaboration among major organizations. The vaccine, developed by the India Serum Institute, was funded by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, in partnership with WHO and PATH, specifically to combat meningitis in Africa. We wonder why none of these groups are offering a statement about this devastating event.

A TIMELINE OF DISTURBING EVENTS

On January 8, 2013, Mr. M., who wishes to remain anonymous, managed to leak television footage from the local television station TeleTchad, showing the Prime Minister of Chad, Emmanuel Nadingar, making an impromptu visit to one of two hospitals accommodating the sick children in hopes of reassuring parents and children. [2]

On January 9, 2013, a full-page article was published by La Voix, entitled The Fate of the Paralyzed Children is Worrying. La Voix, a print-only publication, reported that one parent, speaking from the bedside of her sick son, told reporters that some time after receiving the vaccination, three of the children became ill and their health became increasingly disturbing.

Another citizen told the newspaper, “It took three to four people just to stabilize the children. Panicked by the turn of events, the team took to their heels.”

On January 10, 2013, an article was published by the Journal Du Chad titled Chad: A Vaccine Against Meningitis Caused Casualties, reporting that fifty children aged between 1 and 29 years were admitted to two hospitals, the Hospital of the Mother and Child and the General Hospital National Reference. [3]

Bemadji Benoit, journalist for the Journal Du Tchad, wrote that on day one of the vaccination program, three of the children were said to have become ill, suffering from convulsions, vomiting, headaches, and diarrhea. Their conditions were described as critical. Worried by what had happened to their children, parents reported that they had tried to alert the vaccinators but said that the team continued with the vaccination program.

WHAT WENT WRONG?

By watching this video, you will have learned that the following organizations were involved with the MenAfriVac vaccination project:

CDC – Centers for Disease Control
FDA – Food and Drug Administration
BMGF – The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
PATH – Program for Appropriate Technology in Health
MVP – Meningitis Vaccine Project
WHO – World Health Organization
UNICEF – United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund

So, let us examine what information some of these organizations have shared about this vaccine. Most of them make statements that contradict recommendations from the manufacturer of MenAfriVac.

THE CDC

The CDC provided a statement about the new meningitis vaccine on their website:

“The ‘Meningitis Belt’ in Africa includes 26 of the world’s poorest countries. Frequent outbreaks and sporadic explosive epidemics result in tens of thousands of meningitis cases. Elimination of this disease could reduce morbidity and mortality, disabilities, and countries’ health expenditures.

CDC’s work in meningitis prevention spans several decades and was important in establishing the burden of disease that contributed to the investment case for development of and the mass campaigns that first introduced MenAfriVac™ in Burkina Faso in 2010. This meningococcal A conjugate vaccine was developed specifically to combat epidemic meningitis in sub-Saharan Africa by a consortium of partners including CDC, PATH, WHO, FDA, the Health Protection Agency and the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.” [4]

THE MENINGITIS VACCINE PROJECT

According to the Meningitis Vaccine Project, the MenArfriVac vaccine was specifically designed to meet the needs of Africa’s Meningitis Belt because the vaccine can be transported and stored for as long as four days without refrigeration or icepacks. [5]

THE WHO

The World Health Organization repeated similar information on their website, clearly stating:

THE BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION

And The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which funded the project, also gave similar information:

“Banikoara is home to the world’s first controlled temperature chain (CTC ) campaign. MenAfriVac, a vaccine produced by Serum Institute of India through the Bill & Melinda Gates-funded Meningitis Vaccine Project a partnership between WHO and PATH, is the first vaccine to be prequalified by WHO for use at ambient temperatures of up to 40°C for up to four days.” [7]

PATH

On its website, PATH, a nonprofit global health organization, emphasized the importance of partnerships in the development of MenAfrivac, praising the role of the U.S. government for making the vaccine a reality. The US government assisted with the campaign by offering funding, improving surveillance of the disease, addressing regulatory issues, providing technical expertise to India Serum, developing the conjugation method used in the vaccine, facilitating licensure of U.S.-based intellectual property, and testing the immune response of clinical trial participants. [8]

UNICEF

UNICEF, another major organization involved with the vaccination program, stated on their website:

“On October 31, 2012, MenAfriVac® received approval to be kept outside the cold chain for up to four days at up to 40°C, in a controlled temperature chain (CTC). MenAfriVac® is the first vaccine intended for use in Africa approved for this type of use, potentially setting a regulatory path that other heat-stable vaccines can follow.” [8]

WHAT THE MANUFACTURER SAID

However, in 2010, the manufacturer of MenAfriVac, Serum Institute of India, stated completely different information:

“MenAfriVac should be stored and transported between 2-8ºC. Protect from light. The diluent should be stored at 25°C. It is recommended to protect the reconstituted vaccine from direct sunlight.” [9]

These words from Serum Institute lead us to ask the vital question, Can MenAfriVac be stored outside the cold chain?

WAS THIS VACCINE PROPERLY LICENSED?

In April 2012, OPTIMIZE Immunization Systems and Technologies for Tomorrow shared additional information about the MenAfriVac vaccine in a document authored by two individuals from PATH and one individual from WHO. The document, entitled MenAfriVac™ Planned for Use in a Controlled Temperature Chain, contained key evidence about the lack of appropriate licensure for this vaccine to be used outside of the cold chain:

“Unpublished data obtained from the vaccine manufacturer show that MenAfriVac has proven stable at temperatures of 40°C for limited periods of time. This indicates that the vaccine could be safely distributed outside of the 2°C to 8°C range for a specific period under controlled conditions during campaign activities. The data are currently being reviewed and Serum Institute of India plans to formally submit the request for a MenAfriVac license variation within the next few months.” [10]

So, was a revised license ever granted for the use of MenAfriVac?

Apparently not. According to the report of a meeting which took place in October 2012 between the World Health Organization’s Immunizations, Vaccines and Biologicals group and the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (IPAC), the vaccine would not be endorsed until 2013, at the earliest:

“The session began with an introduction by Mr. Michel Zaffran, who highlighted the groundbreaking progress made with MenAfriVac®, which will be the first EPI vaccine licensed for use in a controlled temperature chain (CTC).”

… This is the final review of the document by IPAC prior to the planned field testing during the MenAfriVac® campaign in Benin in November 2012, where one district will use the vaccine in a CTC. After the field testing has been conducted, the revised final guidance document will come back to IPAC for endorsement in 2013.” [11]

CONCLUSION

As the days turn into weeks, the paralyzed children continue to lie in their hospital beds, immobile and frightened. Their parents feel confused and worried about their children’s future health. These families deserve an explanation of how this tragedy was allowed to happen and reassurance for their new future.

This project was organized and paid for by the leading organizations governing vaccines today, groups with millions of dollars available to make sure vaccines are as safe as possible. Why did these groups ignore the advice of the India Serum Institute, which stated that their product must be stored within a specific cold temperature range? Why have none of these organizations issued a statement about what happened to these paralyzed children? Who is going to explain how the vaccines were stored and transported? What is the African government going to do to help the children and parents at the heart of this vaccination disaster? How many children must be injured before the use of the MenAfriVac vaccine is suspended?

References

Filed under Africa, English, Special Reports, World Tagged with africa, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Chad, India Serum Institute, La Voix, MenAfriVac, Meningitis Vaccine Project, World health organization

At least 40 Children Paralyzed After Receiving New Meningitis Vaccine

January 7, 2013

By CHRISTINA ENGLAND | VACTRUTH | JANUARY 7, 2013

On December 20, 2012, a vaccination tragedy hit the small village of Gouro, located in northern Chad, Africa. According to the newspaper La Voix, out of five hundred children who received the new meningitis vaccine MenAfriVac, at least 40 of them between the ages of 7 and 18 have become paralyzed. Those children also suffered hallucinations and convulsions.

Since this report, the true extent of this tragedy is coming to light, as parents of these vaccinated children have reported yet more injuries. The authorities in the area are shaken, as citizens set fire to a sanitary administration vehicle in a demonstration of their frustration and anger at the government’s negligence.[1]

“We wish that our children would get their health back,” shared the parent of a sick child.

THE MENAFRIVAC VACCINE

MenAfriVac is a new vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India Limited. According to The Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP), it is the first vaccine to gain approval to travel outside the cold chain, meaning that the vaccine can be transported without refrigeration or ice packs for up to four days:

“The meningitis A vaccine known as MenAfriVac®, created to meet the needs of Africa’s meningitis belt, can now be kept in a controlled temperature chain (CTC) at temperatures of up to 40°C for up to four days, a decision that could help increase campaign efficiency and coverage and save funds normally spent maintaining the challenging cold chain during the “last mile” of vaccine delivery.” [2]

The data on the MenAfriVac vaccine is further backed by the World Health Organization’s website [3] and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation website. [4]

So, why does this information differ vastly from the information given on the manufacturer’s website? Serum Institute of India Ltd. stated under the section marked STORAGE:

THE STORY FROM INSIDE AFRICA

Mr. M., the cousin of two of the vaccine-injured children, who currently remain critically ill and hospitalized, explained that many of the children reacted within 24 hours of receiving the vaccine. He said that at first the children vomited and complained of headaches, before falling to the floor with uncontrollable convulsions while bent over with saliva coming from their mouths.

He shared that on December 26, 2012, the Minister of Health and the Minister of Social Security visited Gouro, bringing with them two Members of Parliament. He said that after some discussion, they decided to evacuate approximately 50 paralyzed children to a hospital over three hundred miles away in N’Djamena, the capital city of Chad.

He added that the government responded to the tragedy by paying the parents money in a desperate bid to silence them, further stating that many of the parents are traumatized and confused.

As reported in La Voix, according to a member of the medical staff, as well as a comment from Dr. Daugla Oumagoum Moto, the director of the Center of International Health Support (CSSI), the reactions that these children have suffered are not typical of this type of vaccine against meningitis, which they say are normally fever, vomiting, and headaches, not the adverse reactions experienced by the hospitalized children.

A HEARTFELT PLEA FOR HELP

Fearing for their children’s present and future health, parents of these vaccine-injured children have begun asking questions, such as:

1. Was this a faulty batch of vaccines?

2. Did the vaccinators inadvertently vaccinate using an unsafe product?

3. Was the product out of refrigeration too long?

4. Were the vaccinators fully trained?

This recently vaccinated child is being attended to after becoming paralyzed.

Mr. M. believes the children were left far too long without care and attention. He told me that, despite the state of the vulnerable children and many parents begging for help, the regional authorities failed to respond on time. The children were not seen by the only doctor in the region until a full week after their injuries!

He stated via email:

“In addition, the government and the media have gone silent about the tragedy, while there are still facts requiring clarification whatever contingencies. All this disturbs us and makes us fear the worst effects for the future. For the not knowing of what is going on behind the scenes of the Minister of Health or elsewhere (WHO, UNICEF). As parents our priorities is that how to tell our children, it is very sad that entire city is paralyzed. We are begging our government act quickly as possible to save our children but it is too slow and lack of motivation. Therefore we call assistance for everyone in the world to intervene.” (his exact words from an email)

President Idriss Deby Itno announced at the beginning of the campaign that the vaccine was safe, secure, and would protect citizens against meningitis for ten years. [6]

Gavi Alliance, a major financial partner in the project, which cost $571 million, stated:

“If all of this works like we think it is going to work, then we are going to eliminate these epidemics. Stop. Period,’ said Marc LaForce, Director of the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP), a joint project involving PATH and WHO which developed MenAfriVac in less than ten years.” [7]

Both of these organizations appear to have been silent since the tragedy.

CONCLUSION

La Voix initially reported the incident. If you want to see an enlarged version of the newspaper clipping, click on the photo.

This tragedy raises many unanswered questions. Why were 500 children vaccinated in a region that has only one doctor, who was unable to provide advice or treatment for adverse events until one week later? Why did the manufacturer of MenAfriVac specifically advise that the product should be stored and transported at much lower temperatures than The Meningitis Project claimed? Why were the parents of these vaccine-injured children paid hush money?

Why are vaccines being pushed so strongly in a country which lacks clean drinking water and basic sanitation services? UNICEF blames Chad’s recurrent outbreaks of disease, including meningitis, on this vital, common-sense need. [8] Why have major organizations spent $571 million on a vaccination project, when wells to provide access to clean drinking water have been constructed for less than $3,000 by the International Committee of the Red Cross? [9]

How can at least 40 children become paralyzed after receiving a vaccine, and no news organizations provide coverage of this disturbing situation? The media has gone completely silent. There appear to be no reports of this incident on any government website. The only available information, apart from this one newspaper report, appears to be buried on a small blog titled Le blog de Makaila, which has been reporting regular updates on the situation. [10]

Where are statements from the involved organizations – WHO, GAVI, PATH, UNICEF and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation? Why has this vaccination program not been suspended? What are these organizations going to do about the atrocity that has happened in Gouro?