KUALA TERENGGANU – The limited global supply of the Covid-19 vaccine has made it necessary for the government to monopolise its purchase to ensure the success of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme, said Deputy Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Ahmad Amzad Hashim.
He said although there are requests from the private sector to buy the vaccine through the government, the priority now is for Putrajaya to swiftly get adequate supply to achieve its target of vaccinating 80%, or 26.5 million, of the population, including foreigners, for free.
“We do get the private sector involved in this programme, but only as implementers in giving free vaccination. They (private sector) are not the ones who buy the vaccine.
“This matter is on our radar. For example, there may be (private) agencies wishing to go overseas for business trips, which have to be delayed due to them waiting their turn to be vaccinated. But we haven’t got a policy (to allow vaccine purchase by the private sector).”
Amzad said this when asked to comment on reports that the private sector is keen to buy the Covid-19 vaccine with the help of the government, currently the only channel to get shot supplies from manufacturers.
He said as of yesterday, more than two million Malaysians have registered for the vaccination, of which 112,000 are frontliners who have received their shots.
He advised the people to not worry about the brand of the vaccine as all are approved by the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency, which is thorough on matters of quality and safety of vaccines.
“So far, 279 million doses have been administered to individuals in 107 countries. On average, six million people are given jabs daily, and the rate of side effects is low.” – Bernama, March 6, 2021
