Malaysians are wishing for a Covid-free 2021

Hoping for the best: Lim (left), Mishna (middle) and Amira are wishing for a better year ahead.

GEORGE TOWN: It has been a year that many wish were a bad dream that would go away when they wake up.

Ask any Malaysians what their wish for 2021 is and chances are, they will answer immediately – a Covid-19-free Malaysia.

Sales manager Lim Shi Xu, 38, is hopeful that once the pandemic ends, the economy would recover.

“This is crucial to ease the burden of the average households, ” she said.

While there are challenges on the work front, Lim is grateful that she is able to still bring in income.

“Although this year has been tough, I found a way to get sales digitally. My wish is that it will continue to be a smooth path for me at work, ” she said.

Stressing that it is important to adapt to the situation, Lim hopes that her family, too, will keep on being resilient.

The mother of two also hopes that next year, her children will get to catch up with their studies when school reopens.

“This year, they have been spending a lot of time away from school, ” she said.

Civil servant Amira Ahmad, 36, wishes for a more productive 2021.

“Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, productivity dropped this year. I hope the situation will improve with new norms along with the economy, ” she said, adding that her husband’s telecommunications business had slowed down.

“I just want the pandemic to end soon, so the economy will bounce back, ” she said.

Like Lim, Amira is worried about her children’s education.

“My daughter is going to be nine and my son will be in kindergarten next year. This year, they only managed to go to school for about three months, with most lessons being done online. I hope that they can catch up with their studies next year, ” she said.

Assistant environmental health officer M. Mishna, 29, who is based in Seberang Prai, is looking forward to returning to her hometown in Pahang to start a new job or her own business.

“That’s the plan so that I can be with my husband and our one-year-old son. I missed his first birthday celebration this year.

“Due to the pandemic, it made me realise how important it is to spend quality time with family, ” she said.

Mishna also aims to sign up for a degree course next year.

“I want to further my studies in occupational health, and be a better mother to my son, ” she said.

Security guard Abas Haja Alaudin, 46, prayed that the vaccine for Covid-19 will be made available to the public soon.

“Everything, including the economy, can only return to what it was when the vaccine is available.

“I really hope things will be better in 2021. This has been a really gloomy year, ” he said.