KOTA KINABALU – Sabah should establish its own Covid-19 vaccination task force as soon as possible to ensure the smooth and successful distribution of the vaccine and its safe administration to the masses in the state.
Sabah Independent Candidates Alliance (SICA) member Melanie Chia said that, while the alliance acknowledges that the Covid-19 vaccination programme comes under the federal government’s jurisdiction, the state should set up its own team to ensure sufficient cold storage facilities.
“Before the vaccines arrive in Sabah, the state should also provide transportation to distribute the vaccines and enough trained medical personnel to administer the vaccines to the populace in Sabah, to both Malaysians and non-Malaysians,” she said in a statement.
Chia added a sufficient number of trained medical personnel is important as there have been cases of side effects of the vaccine reported in the UK and the US recently, she said.
Chia said the special task force must take into consideration Sabah's challenging geographical landscape, which poses logistical difficulties in rural areas, as well as the presence of a huge number of foreign immigrants and workers in the state.
“The special task force should also set up a dedicated social media platform to keep the public abreast of the Covid-19 vaccination programme.”
The former Luyang assemblyman said it had been reported that a health worker in Alaska suffered a serious allergic reaction after getting vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Previously, the Wall Street Journal had reported that rolling out the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines beyond hospitals will take longer than anticipated because of logistical challenges and complications.
Reports had also surfaced from the UK of patients suffering allergic reactions after receiving the inoculation.
The UK government had warned that the Pfizer vaccine should not be used by pregnant or breast-feeding mothers, or children as its effects on fertility is yet unknown.
Meanwhile, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October this year had listed the possible side effects from the vaccine that included strokes, encephalitis, auto-immune disease, birth defects and Kawasaki disease.
Under Budget 2021, the government has allocated RM3 billion for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccines.
Chia said SICA was delighted to learn that Malaysia would be able to distribute vaccines that require sub-zero storage and transportation as the country has proven its capability to do so in the past.
SICA is an ad hoc five-member political grouping formed during the Sabah election in September. – The Vibes, December 20, 2020
