KUALA LUMPUR – Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has called on the government to come clean on its decision to buy Pfizer’s mRNA Covid-19 vaccine in an effort to contain the pandemic.
While Putrajaya has yet to divulge the price tag for the deal, said the Gua Musang MP in a statement today, the vaccine purchase costs more than RM2 billion.
“The cost for the special storage and distribution facilities required to keep the vaccine refrigerated at -80°C could be another RM1 billion.”
Pfizer has said its vaccine needs to be stored at -70°C.
“Would there be additional costs involved in filling and finishing the vaccine locally?” said Tengku Razaleigh.
Calling on the minister in charge of procurement to speak up on the matter, the Umno veteran said despite the government allocation of RM3 billion to procure vaccines for the entire country, the Pfizer deal covers only 20% of the population.
He urged Putrajaya to consider other alternatives to end the pandemic if it is unable to ensure a “safe and effective” vaccine is used.
Should the government refuse to reconsider or review the Pfizer deal, he said, cabinet members and senior officials who are medically fit should be administered the vaccine first, so as to lead by example and show sincerity.
“I would also like to propose that those medical representatives, health analysts, writers and academics who are very supportive of this Pfizer deal be mandated to be given this vaccine first.
“Even former Pfizer vice-president Dr Mike Yeadon believes that people around the world are acquiring the natural herd immunity needed, and there is no need for any vaccines to bring the pandemic to an end.”
Vaccines generally take years of testing before they are declared ready for mass deployment, he said, adding that safety should be the most important factor taken into consideration, even over efficiency and durability.
“Pfizer’s and other vaccine developments were fast-tracked under immense pressure from US President Donald Trump, who needed a Covid vaccine badly as a political weapon for his November re-election.
“The three phases of human clinical trials for both Pfizer and Moderna took only several months of what should have been several years in order to ensure that there are no harmful side effects some years from now.
“During the trials, (it was reported that) there were side effects, such as muscle pain, chills and headache.”
Tengku Razaleigh cited reports that suggest the Pfizer vaccine may not stop the transmission of the coronavirus, only suppressing the disease’s symptoms, with the jab possibly providing only short-term protection.
“Therefore, what is the purpose of this vaccine if it cannot stop the spread of Covid-19, and the (various iterations of the) MCO (movement control order) will need to be enforced, which will continue to drag the economy down?”
In the meantime, he said, movement curbs should be targeted, covering only susceptible groups or areas, instead of being applied across states.
Citing as examples the mumps and Ebola vaccines, which took four years and 5½ years to develop, respectively, Tengku Razaleigh warned that an accelerated development process could lead to undesirable and unexpected side effects appearing later on.
“As this mRNA technology has never been used on humans before, no one can guarantee that there would be no middle- and long-term side effects, such as autoimmunity, reactogenicity, and other harmful and unpredictable symptoms.
“In the last quarter-century, there have only been seven truly new vaccines introduced globally at clinical practice... We have been trying to get a HIV vaccine since the 1980s, and we’ve been unsuccessful.
“The most notorious drug scandal took place in Nigeria in 1996, when Pfizer conducted unauthorised clinical tests on 200 children for its antibiotic drug, Trovan.
“The trials led to the deaths of 11 children. Pfizer paid a huge compensation and set up a special fund for those affected by Trovan, but it could not bring back to life those children who have died.
“If the Pfizer vaccine is so safe and effective, why has the UK government just announced that it has granted immunity to Pfizer from legal action (by consumers)? Has our own government already signed, or intends to sign, away such an unjust and irresponsible clause?”
He said Oxford University and Astra Zeneca’s adenovirus vector vaccine, and China’s Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines, also at Phase 3 trials, seem much safer, as the technology was tried and tested during the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome and Ebola outbreaks.
“I am not saying Pfizer would not be doing its best on safety. But, how can they or anyone guarantee safety using such new technology and on such a rush job?
“While I have full confidence in our healthcare frontliners, does our country have the high-level expertise on vaccine R&D to be able to analyse the data properly from the short periods of clinical trials?”
His comments follow the government’s announcement on a preliminary agreement to purchase 12.8 million doses of Pfizer’s vaccine for 6.4 million people in Malaysia.
The vaccine, developed by Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech, is expected to be priced at US$19.50 (RM79) per dose. – The Vibes, December 7, 2020
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