KOTA KINABALU – Sabah ministers and their deputies will take a 50% pay cut for two months while Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) assemblymen will see a 30% reduction for a month’s salary as a donation to the state Covid-19 fund.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Mohd Noor said this applies to 11 state ministers and 18 assistant ministers, and 48 GRS assemblymen.
Hajiji, who is also Sulaman assemblyman, also announced the state cabinet decision to allocate RM120,469,481 to Bantuan Sabah Prihatin 3.0 Covid-19.
Another RM34.4 million is allocated for food aid to all sectors affected by the pandemic, he added.
On the pace of vaccination and registration, Hajiji admitted that it was unsatisfactory, saying that people can try to get their jabs at any vaccination centre although not having registered or given appointments.
“But we have already started to achieve our target in inoculating people in rural areas. We have moved into those areas to help with registration and vaccination.
“This is done via reaching out to the recipients and opening more vaccination centres at clinics in the interiors.”
However, Hajiji played down talks that the inoculation progress was underperforming.
As of yesterday, the state’s total registration stood at 585,227. Meanwhile, some 430,500 have received at least one dose.
“Some people are having issues travelling to the vaccination venues. We aim by the end of the year or early next year to have the majority of the people in Sabah be vaccinated,” he said, adding that more vaccine supplies will arrive soon.
On whether the state has been allowed to purchase vaccines, Hajiji said the federal government has allowed private hospitals and clinics to administer the jabs.
As for purchasing, he said the state government will look into procurement for approved vaccines. – The Vibes, June 10, 2021
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