This follows government’s impounding of more than 2000 bottles of Selenium at the Lusaka International airport from Canada more than seven weeks ago.

Selenium is regarded as one of the strongest treatment of HIV/AIDS, according to a study conducted by the Harvard University. The study was conducted in Nigeria.

Howard Armistead, the director of Sam Medical Products which supplies Selenium in Zambia says there is panic among people who have been receiving the therapy and responding very well. He said that there are currently about ten thousand people taking the therapy.

The Zambia Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority impounded the selenium saying it was not registered in Zambia. But according to available records, Selenium is registered by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Spokesperson of the country’s ministry of health, Dr. Canisius Banda is on record saying Selenium is an important product for people living with HIV/AIDS.

Howard Armistead, the director of Sam Medical Products, has been living with HIV/AIDS for 24 years and says his immune has improved tremendously since the time he started taking Selenium.

He explained that the impounding of the medicine has caused a lot of havoc and will lead to deaths if not addressed immediately.

He gave an example of one journalist whom he said probably would not have died if the Selenium was not impounded. According to Armistead, the named journalist was on Selenium for two months but had run out of it just at the time when the fresh consignment was impounded.

“She was improving tremendously but she run out of Selenium and phoned me but I told her that I did have any in stock. Six days after running out of Selenium she got sick and later died,” he explained.

Armistead complained that the Regulatory Authority has been trying to frustrate the distribution of the therapy in the country for a long time.

On February 14, 2007, the ex-minister of Health, Angela Cifire, intervened in the matter and instructed in writing that Selenium may be marketed in Zambia as nutritional and food supplement but without making any medicinal claims.
Armistead said that pharmacies, Catholics and government departments are all waiting in panic as they have run out of the therapy.

He said the only reason he could think of for the impounding is rampant corruption in the Regulatory Authority as other products have been imported in the country while awaiting registration.

Keywords:  health society zambia