Western Cape Government commends Cape Town City Football Club on vaccination drive
To help drive awareness on the importance of being vaccinated, Premier Alan Winde, MEC Anroux Marais and the Western Cape Department of Health’s Chief of Operations: Dr Saadiq Kariem joined the Cape Town City Football Club (CTCFC) as they vaccinated against COVID-19 at the CTICC today, Friday, 3 September 2021.
To respond to the evidence showing a lower vaccine registration rate amongst men in particular, CTCFC Chairperson, Mr. John Comitis and Social Captain, Mduduzi Mdantsane shared their messages of support as well as their experiences of being vaccinated.
In his remarks, CTCFC Chairperson, Mr. John Comitis said, “Football has led the way to the return of sport in the height of the pandemic. Whilst we attended to every protocol to achieve this, we have remained active and able to provide a glimmer of hope for South Africa to return to normality. This initiative to vaccinate all players and staff is to encourage our fellow South Africans and most of all our fans and supporters that the vaccine is safe to use. We need them back in the stands. Football with no fans is not Football”.
"We are blessed to live in a province where sport is the life-blood of so many households. This is what makes us proudly Capetonian. It is for this reason we are proud to welcome Cape Town City Football Club to be the first professional sports club to partner with us and commit in setting the stage for our society in our pursuit to achieve maximum protection against this virus. A virus which has taken away so much already. We can make this a reality. Let these sportspeople be an example for everyone who has not been vaccinated yet - make that choice and get vaccinated. We can only save summer, save sport and save our future if we work together and get vaccinated," said Dr Saadiq Kariem, Chief of Operations for the Western Cape Department of Health.
MEC Marais thanked the CTCFC for leveraging their influence as iconic sporting role models for so many, particularly men in this province, to encourage vaccinations amongst the hesitant. MEC Marais said, “I appeal to all members of the public to get their vaccination as soon as they can – the sooner we can reach our vaccination targets, the sooner we can start safely opening up more of the sectors in our care, particularly the arts and sport industry to allow us to slowly return to having live audiences at events. We must do this to support the live events, as well as our sport and cultural industries, in our province”.
At the vaccination drive, the Premier of the Western Cape, Alan Winde, said: “I want to thank each and every footballer who joined us at CTICC Vaccination Centre Hope for their vaccination today. By showing up, they have set an example for the people in the Western Cape. I join them in encouraging their fans to go out and get vaccinated as soon as possible.”
Premier Winde concluded “I personally want to see our stadiums full again. This is the objective we must all be working towards. The reality is that it will only be possible if we all get vaccinated as soon as possible. So I say: get vaccinated so that you can save lives, but also so that you can save our summer, our jobs, and our sport.”
Vaccines save lives and will help save jobs, especially in the sporting events sector, and so we are collaboratively playing our part to encourage vaccinations in the Western Cape so to safely move forward as we contain, adapt and recover in the province.
Caption to attached photograph- From left: Western Cape Department of Health’s Chief of Operations: Dr Saadiq Kariem; Premier Alan Winde; CTCFC Chairman: John Comitis; DirectAxis CEO: Rob Gwerengwe; MEC Anroux Marais; CTCFC Player: Mduduzi Mdantsane; CTCFC Head Coach: Eric Tinkler
Media enquiries:
Stacy McLean - Spokesperson for Anroux Marais, MEC of Cultural Affairs and Sport
Mobile: 083 504 1171
