KUALA LUMPUR – As daily Covid-19 cases continue to soar, Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has urged the government to not be too reliant on vaccines, which are still undergoing clinical trials.
This is especially due to the complexity and unfamiliarity of the coronavirus, he said today, citing statements previously issued by health experts.
Instead, Zahid said the government must act proactively from now to ensure the rate of infection can be kept under control, including imposing stricter restrictions under the movement control order (MCO).
He fears that if more cases continue to be recorded, Malaysia will need a longer time to deal with the pandemic.
“They (experts) have said that vaccines do not have healing characteristics, but are meant to prevent and control the disease from advancing. They believe standard operating procedures like social distancing are still required after vaccines are rolled out.
“This means the Covid-19 vaccines are not magical. It will take time before we can really address the pandemic,” he said in a Facebook post today.
“The government must be more proactive. We don’t want more people succumbing while waiting to be inoculated. Tighten the MCO, and provide the necessary aid to the rakyat and businesses to survive.”
His statement comes as Malaysia registers record-breaking daily cases of more than 5,000 in the past three days, and after 48 health workers at the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital in Terengganu tested positive for Covid-19.
In a separate statement yesterday, Zahid questioned how a company that is not a vaccine manufacturer could claim to have been given approval from the Health Ministry to distribute Covid-19 vaccines.
“Don’t allow any quarters to manipulate matters pertaining to the vaccines, to a point that even a company specialising in manufacturing steel poles for street lights can be given approval to negotiate deals.”
This is in reference to a January 29 statement by Mestron Holding Bhd, saying it has been given approval by the Health Ministry to start negotiations and cooperation with any Chinese company on the distribution of vaccines.
Mestron is reported to be currently in negotiation with Zhongyu Yexing (Chengdu) Industrial Co Ltd.
However, on Saturday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said that there has been no clearance from the ministry to date for Mestron, while Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said there was no such engagement with the company.
Yesterday, Mestron clarified that there has been no clearance from the ministry, and that the company’s intention was merely to explore the vaccine distribution business by partnering with Zhongyu. – The Vibes, February 1, 2021
