NOW that the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine has gained momentum, citizens must turn up in large numbers and get inoculated so that they wait for the second dose.
In Lusaka, there are no queues in health facilities, an indication that some people have taken a wait-and-see stance instead of rushing for the jab.
All citizens who are still procrastinating will find themselves in long and meandering queues soon because the number in this bracket is too huge and will come out at once to congest the centres.
The myths and conspiracy theories are slowly dying out, though the fear of blood-clotting reported in some countries has gripped some Zambians.
Some countries in Europe had temporarily halted administration of AstraZeneca vaccines, but resumed the exercise as the side effects were minimal.
Zambia is administering AstraZeneca, whose recommended dosage is two doses given intramuscularly with an interval of eight to 12 weeks.
International organisations, including the World Health Organisation, have fully certified the AstraZeneca vaccine as safe and effective at protecting people from serious risks of Covid-19, including death, hospitalisation and severe illness.
In fact, Zambians ought to understand that Zambia has not yet started using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which sent shivers in some countries at one time, including the United States.
Last month in the US, six women between the ages of 18 and 48 developed the illness within one to three weeks of taking a Johnson & Johnson vaccination.
One woman in Virginia died while the other one in Nebraska was hospitalised in critical condition.
At the time, more than seven million people in the US had received Johnson & Johnson shots and another 10 million doses had been shipped out to the states.
However, the number of people reported to have been seriously affected was minimal, considering that it was six women only out of the seven million people who were vaccinated with Johnson & Johnson vaccine at the time.
In fact, Johnson & Johnson was later certified safe and administration of the vaccine has resumed.
Therefore, there is no reason for any Zambian to be sceptical about taking the AstraZeneca vaccine which is also being administered in neighbouring Malawi.
Malawi, which started the vaccination programme earlier than Zambia, had by Friday last week administered about 230, 000 doses.
The country received more than 400, 000 AstraZeneca shots from Covax and the Indian government and so far no serious side effects have been recorded.
Other African countries have been administering the AstraZeneca vaccine and not one person has experienced any blood clotting.
Even in European countries where blood clotting has been reported, there is no direct link between the vaccine and the clotting which had been proved.
Therefore, the programme in Zambia should be expedited even in the rural areas before the onset of the cold season, which is the prime time for rise in numbers of Covid-19.
People should not wait to congest the health facility in the event that the third wave breaks out, but should get the vaccine now.
