SANDAKAN – A walk-in Covid-19 vaccination initiative meant to inoculate and protect residents of the Taman Harmoni People’s Housing Project (PPR) at Mile 3 here backfired when people swarmed the vaccination centre (PPV), ignoring physical distancing guidelines.
Over a thousand people converged at the Taman Harmoni community hall as early as 7am, resulting in disorder, before security personnel arrived.
The crowd was triggered by a WhatsApp message from the Sandakan Health Office informing residents of Taman Harmoni who have not been inoculated to go to the centre starting today.
The message said the vaccination is only open for residents of Taman Harmoni who are over 17 years old, not positive for Covid-19 nor having its symptoms, and have a phone number.
It also specified that anyone can get the jab – regardless of citizenship.
This detail attracted many non-Malaysians, apparently, from outside the housing area to show up for the chance to get inoculated.
A resident of Taman Harmoni, Anna Asmael, told The Vibes that a lot of people passed the message to their friends and relatives living elsewhere.
As the programme allowed walk-ins, it meant that it was implemented on a first-come-first-serve basis depending on stocks. Keen not to miss the opportunity, people arrived in droves early in the morning.
“I did not go to the hall today because I have received my first dose of vaccine in Hakka Hall recently,” she said.
“However, seeing the crowd, I do worry that it will make the virus spread among the residents here, defying the objective of inoculating residents of Taman Harmoni to protect us from the virus.”
In April last year, Taman Harmoni became the first residential area in Sandakan to be placed under the enhanced movement control order (EMCO). It was imposed with EMCO again in October last year.
Only 350 doses prepared for today
Sandakan health officer Dr. Johari Awang Besar told The Vibes that the programme which targeted only Taman Harmoni’s residents was prepared with 350 doses of vaccine for today.
“The crowd was unexpected. There are people outside of Taman Harmoni who had also gone to the centre. They went so early that the security personnel have not even reached the centre yet,” he said.
Following this, videos of the crowds have been circulating on Facebook this morning.
Among those sharing a video was former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Najib’s post read: “It was said that this (video) is from PPV Taman Harmoni, Mile 3 Sandakan this morning. I hope the relevant parties will investigate and fix this immediately. New (Covid-19) cases in Sabah are very high at the moment.”
The situation in Taman Harmoni was under control at about 10am, when the crowd formed a long queue that went all the way to the residential blocks.
A similar walk-in programme is being conducted in Sri Taman Mile 3 mosque today, but the vaccination there has been smooth and orderly.
Yesterday, Sandakan MP Vivian Wong and Elopura assemblyman Calvin Chong, both from DAP, had commended the Sandakan district health office for conducting vaccination programmes targeting hotspots and EMCO areas.
Wong said the vaccination programme in Taman Harmoni is a brilliant effort by the office to boost vaccination rates.
Only yesterday, a massive congestion occurred after thousands showed up at the Rumah Prihatin @ Grand Seasons vaccination centre in Kuala Lumpur.
Government is finally opening up vaccination to undocumented migrants & refugees; yay! But hold up - we are seeing videos after videos like this on long queues, defying SOPs and congested PPVs. So what is going on and what should be done?
— Project Liber8 (@ProjectLiber8) August 12, 2021
1/5 https://t.co/iZxq3ZeupH
A seven-minute, 15-second video that went viral showed a large crowd gathering in the compound of the centre with little regard for physical distancing.
The management there later clarified that the situation arose due to a misunderstanding that it was offering walk-in Covid-19 vaccinations for non-citizens. Walk-in jabs for non-Malaysians are in fact offered at the Bukit Jalil vaccination centre. – The Vibes, Aug 12, 2021
