‘Vaccination drive must continue’

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians interviewed by The Star hope that the country’s ramped-up vaccination rate will be sustained even as developments in the country’s political arena heat up.

Consultant rheumatologist Prof Dr Sargunan Sockalingam (pic) of University Malaya Medical Centre said he was confident the vaccination exercise would continue regardless of the political climate.

“The vaccination is a basic ‘necessity’ if anyone is to win the battle against Covid-19, and that cannot be compromised.

“It is a global initiative between private sectors and governments all over the world.

“The good news is that in Malaysia they have ramped up the vaccination numbers and are achieving very good numbers a day – and that will continue,” he said.

“It is for the benefit of all parties to ensure as many people in Malaysia get their Covid-19 vaccines.

“If not, people will fall sick and die. All governments know that the vaccination is not a compromise, and it must absolutely continue.”

Nazmi Shaarani, 30, is not too anxious about the gains of the vaccination programme being “lost” due to political developments.

“I’m not too concerned because it is carried out by government servants, although the programme is led by Khairy Jamaluddin.

“The plan is there and it just needs to be executed. It would be similar to the brief period where we did not have a Health Minister but the ministry was led by the Health director-general.

“We just need to do everything without political interference,” he said.

Marketing executive S. Jeyarani, however, said she had some concerns that the flurry of political activity in recent days would disrupt the vaccination process, just as it was gaining momentum.

“My worry is that the internal squabbles within the government will affect people’s access to the vaccination.

“Now that Umno has withdrawn support for the Prime Minister, we don’t know if there is a new government or if a new vaccination system would be set in place,” said the yet-to-be vaccinated 27-year-old.

Serena Yong, 36, said politicians should focus on battling the Covid-19 pandemic and restoring the economy.

“Politicking at this time is inappropriate, especially when the healthcare system is on the brink of collapse and people have no food to eat. I hope the government will stop getting distracted and focus fully on the country’s recovery and vaccination programme.

“The vaccination programme is what would get us out of this predicament,” said the analyst, who has had one dose of the vaccine.

Jacqueline Pereira, who is self-employed, said it was simply not the time for political polemics between parties.

“We have bigger problems right now. What guarantee can the leaders give the people that we would get our vaccines if they are busy politicking?

“If changes are made now, I’m scared that the vaccination plan would halt and it would be months before we catch up,” said the 40-year-old.

Social media user Leong Wee Seong said the vaccination programme appeared to be progressing smoothly despite the developments in the political landscape.

“We are reaching the target, bravo. Keep it up. Forget about politics now and continue to work on vaccination and also getting the other team of your colleagues to keep the borders guarded to prevent the Lambda (variant) from arriving in Malaysia,” he said.