SFCA urges state govt to buy its own Covid-19 vaccine

Federation of Chinese Associations Sarawak (SFCA) has urged the Sarawak government to be proactive in acquiring the Covid-19 vaccine for Sarawakians.

In a statement yesterday, SFCA said the number of new Covid-19 positive cases recorded daily in the state had been soaring high.

“We urge the Sarawak government to purchase the vaccine directly and make sure to vaccinate Sarawakians against the virus rather than waiting for the federal government to allocate us the vaccine,” it said.

SFCA said the Sarawak government should also be proactive in the purchase of the necessary medical equipment for the welfare and well-being of all Sarawakians.

SFCA said it was high time for the state government to purchase vaccines for Sarawakians instead of waiting for the federal government to allocate Sarawak’s share.

It added this was also in line with the state government’s objective of getting at least 70 per cent of its populations vaccinated against Covid-19 by August.

“Furthermore, the coordinating minister for the National Covid19 Immunisation Programme, Khairy Jamaluddin, has made it clear that the federal government was not against any state government purchasing its own Covid-19 vaccine,” said SFCA.

On the issue of eight out of the 10 ventilators that were sent by the federal government to Sarawak not functioning well,

SFCA said that hospitals in Sarawak were already lacking medical equipment and the worsening pandemic situation in the state was not helping.

It said the state was in dire need of better medical equipment to address various issues brought about by the pandemic.

“Lives are at stake. While we are hoping for more assistance, we also hope that the Sarawak government can regain its autonomy on education and health to help expedite the vaccination process,” said SFCA.