Why the deprioritisation of certain front-liners in vaccine rollout?

Thousands of teachers and their support staff from across the country began receiving their Covid-19 vaccine jabs on Wednesday, something widely welcomed by many.

In the Eastern Cape, the process is expected to result in the  vaccination of  76,826 education personnel.  

The rollout, which will continue until early next month, has brought both hope and relief from almost unbearable anxiety to education staff.  Pictures of smiling and joyful teachers going  through the vaccination process have been splashed across traditional and social media platforms.

However, amid all these celebrations and ululations, there are two classes that seem to have been forgotten — early childhood development  teachers and lecturers.

ECD teachers, deal with young children on a daily basis at creches and daycare centres, seem not to be on the list of the current targeted education staff.

We are perplexed. Is this because they fall under the social development department and  not the education department? Or perhaps it is a question of the government intending to put them in the next priority category of people to be vaccinated? 

ECD staff members feel hard done by,  judging by calls and comments to a number of radio talk shows. 

If support staff, cleaners, security guards and education department officials are to receive their vaccines, it is difficult to understand why EDC staff have been omitted from the list of those who started  receiving jabs on Wednesday. 

It is common knowledge that the vaccine rollout has been slow  for a number of reasons. But in this instance we must have transparency.

Perhaps the government must clarify its definition of both teachers and front-line workers.

If everyone in the education sector is a priority, why is this prioritisation based on some element of exclusion? 

Lecturers in universities and colleges, just like ECD teachers, are  left out of the current programme.

Police officers are also front-line workers. Yet a  number of training colleges, where there are lecturers,  are not on the list. Lecturers, just like  high school teachers,  interact with young people, who are fond of attending super-spreader events, and surely need protection from the jab just as much as their colleagues.

We are cognisant of the government's phased rollout plan. But  surely everyone should be able to expect equal treatment  in  the sector of front-liners, be it education, police, prisons or emergency work.

 Any deviance will invoke perceptions of discrimination from those who are left out.