PUTRAJAYA – Education Ministry (MoE) staff are believed to constitute the biggest group of civil servants who have yet to be vaccinated against Covid-19, according to Public Service Department (PSD) director-general Tan Sri Mohd Khairul Adib Abd Rahman.
Without disclosing details, he said the PSD is updating the data of the civil servants who have not been vaccinated, and this process is expected to be completed in two weeks’ time.
Currently, the PSD is matching the data of unvaccinated civil servants using the Human Resource Management Information System and MySejahtera app of the Health Ministry, he said.
“As of (yesterday), the data is being updated and the PSD will relook the reasons given by these civil servants for not wanting to be vaccinated.
“The reasons given will then be reviewed by each department head… so heads of department need to go to the ground to understand the reasons given for not wanting to be vaccinated,” he said when met after attending the #KeluargaMalaysiaSiagaBencana 2021 National Preparedness Month programme here yesterday.
The PSD had issued a circular mandating civil servants including teachers to get vaccinated before November 1 or face disciplinary action, including possible dismissal.
On November 1, Education Minister Datuk Radzi Mohd Jidin said school authorities are authorised to conduct checks immediately to determine if teachers possess vaccination certificates to ensure they comply with the circular.
Khairul Adib said as yet, no disciplinary action has been taken against civil servants for refusing Covid-19 vaccination.
“We understand there are some who are concerned about getting vaccinated, and some of them do not want to be vaccinated because they are cancer patients, have just given birth, or are infected by Covid-19. These groups will be given an exemption,” he said.
He said department heads needed to make good decisions regarding this issue to ensure there is no service delivery disruption to the community.
“Sometimes, department heads are forced to be firm to ensure services are not affected,” he added. – Bernama, November 8, 2021