MEC Lebogang Maile tells ‘comrades’ to stop blaming Covid-19 for ‘matters no longer rising’

Gauteng MEC for human settlements Lebogang Maile has left social media doing a double take this week after he joked about people blaming the Covid-19 vaccination for erectile dysfunction.

The outspoken MEC joked that the matter should be referred to male sexual health services.

“Comrades, let us desist from blaming the vaccination for matters no longer rising when the matters never rose to begin with,” said Maile. 

He said the vaccine’s job was not to correct “pre-existing conditions”. 

“These matters should be referred to the Mens Clinic for robust engagement and recommendations.”

Attempts to get further comment from Maile were unsuccessful at the time of publishing this story. Any comment will be included once received.

Maile is not the first leader to publicly dismiss rumours linked to the vaccine. 

Last month basic education minister Angie Motshekga slammed myths around vaccines  after some teachers refused the jab. 

Motshekga said some teachers were hesitant to get vaccinated against Covid-19 because they fear it would lead to infertility.

“I was told in Soweto a health worker said if you are vaccinated you won’t bear children. Young people withdrew their names because they didn’t want to be childless adults. 

“A number of myths have been going around about the vaccines which we need to correct. Our teacher union leaders are assisting us to assure everybody about the safety of the vaccines,” she said.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there is no direct link between the vaccine and erectile dysfunction. 

“The effects of the Covid-19 vaccines vary from person to person, as with most vaccines. As more people get vaccinated, we may be able to determine patterns. This information continues to be collected and will be shared,” said WHO. 

Top international researchers investigated sperm from 45 men before and after they got vaccinated and found no negative effects. 

“We found no evidence to suggest any negative effects from Covid-19 vaccine on sperm among the men in our study,” urologist Daniel Nassau told German outlet DW.

However, in a review of research published earlier this year, the US National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) said there is a correlation between survivors of the  coronavirus and erectile dysfunction. 

“Erectile dysfunction is a likely consequence of Covid-19 for survivors, and considering the high transmissibility of the infection and the higher contagion rates among elderly men, a worrying phenomenon for a large part of affected patients."