Papua New Guinea’s Health Minster, Jelta Wong, MP, has roundly condemned reckless and misleading claims by his predecessor on the number of people losing their lives to COVID-19 in Papua New Guinea. Minister Wong said the Member for Pomio, Elias Kapavore, MP, and the Opposition are peddling fake news and showing a total disregard for the lives and safety of Papua New Guineans. "The statement by the former Health Minister about the number of people recovering from COVID-19 is wrong,” Minister Wong said. "This follows similar claims made by foreign anti-vaccination activists in other countries that have been discredited. "The death rate Tor C0VID-19 is not one per cent as the Opposition claims with his misleading figure that 99 per cent of infected people have recovered. "The anti-vaccination activists refuse to admit what everyone of us knows, and that is there are many people dying from C0VID-19 who are not included in official figures." "These are deaths where the body was not tested, was not accurately reported because of community fears or the death was not reported to health authorities." "The Morobe Public Health Authority has advised that the recovery rate for infected patients is as low as 90 per cent, meaning 10 per cent of COVID-19 patients have died." “According to these nonsense figures peddled by Opposition, the COVID-19 death rate in Papua New Guinea is lower than countries such as Germany which is a country with one of the best medical care systems in the world." “I hope that Mr. Kapavore, a medical practitioner and former Provincial Health Authority CEO, does not really believe the claims he is making and stop misleading our people. "The Opposition should stop downplaying the COVID-19 infection threat as cases continue to rise, and stop politicising vaccines because right now we are staring death in the face." The Health Minister further expressed his disappointment in the Mr. Kapavore appears to dismiss any death occurring as a result of COVID-19. "One of the concerning parts of the statement by Mr. Kapavore is that he appears to dismiss the loss of Papua New Guinean lives as unimportant." "Every man, woman, child that dies from COVID-19 in our country is another precious life lost." "Every vaccinated person is another life saved and the Opposition should stop this mischief that is causing people to be hesitant and lose their life if they delay vaccination." "All leaders need to respect the lives and health of our people, and not be misled by anti-vaccination activist."