Government on Tuesday commenced its vaccine mandate exercise; a measure implemented to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This is after the Ghana Health Service (GHS), in December last year, announced a no-vaccination-no-entry policy to be accompanied by mandatory vaccination in January 2022.

On the first working day in the year, JoyNews checks revealed strict enforcement of the directive at government offices.

Individuals who were unable to prove their vaccination status were not allowed into the premises of some public institutions.

The Ministry of Health was among the institutions that forbade persons without their vaccination card from entering its premises.

Some concerned citizens who spoke to JoyNews’ Manuel Koranteng expressed displeasure over the measures.

According to some, their vaccination cards are nowhere to be found, and for others, they were not aware of the vaccine mandate exercise that was executed today.

“Last year, for all my transactions, they never requested a vaccine card. I could have found this thing and brought it. I (don’t know where I placed the card), but I know I am vaccinated. If I can go to the clinic at the Ministry where I took my jab, my records are there. So they should give me a card.”

“I was not expecting such a thing to happen. I have been to the Ministry of Finance, and nothing was asked of me, so I didn’t know about it,” another added.

A nurse present said: “We got here this morning and learnt no vaccination card; you can’t enter. So we weren’t aware of it. If we had been informed earlier, we would have come with it. So I can’t blame them and us as well.”

However, a section admitted blame and left the Ministry’s premises to their various homes.

“I came to the Ministry of Health for an enquiry, but I got to see the notice ‘no vaccination no entry’. So I decided to step back since I have not been vaccinated; hence I won’t have a card. I am going home. I am coming from Kasoa.”

Meanwhile, according to the Ghana Health Service, the country is battling 13,025 active cases of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In its latest update, the Service noted that as of December 31, 2021, a total of 1,084 new cases were recorded. Ghana’s Covid-19 death toll now stands at 1,309.