Many concerned about decision to discontinue Sinovac vaccine jab — PSB man

KUCHING: Many people are concerned as to why the federal government has decided to discontinue China’s Sinovac vaccine jab, claimed PSB Kota Sentosa representative Datuk Dr John Lau Pang Heng.

He noted that moving forward, the inoculation drive in the country will be largely anchored by the Pfizer-Biotech mRNA vaccine.

“Though there is no available statistics on how many Sarawakians have received Sinovac vaccine, the concerns are whether Sinovac (has) efficacy against new and more contagious variants of the coronavirus,” he said in a statement yesterday, adding that the announcement had caused worry among those who had received the Sinovac vaccine.

Lau said that for the past weeks, many were fearful of the news in circulation concerning the Delta variant.

“Many are asking, what has the authority done to diffuse the concerns? Has the authority taken immediate action to address the source of the Delta variant? And what steps have been taken to arrest the spread of the Delta variant?

“It is assumed that a majority of the rural population has not been vaccinated. Pfizer vaccines need to be stored in an ultra-cold freeze between -80°C and -60°C (-112°F and -76°F). There may be a big challenge to store the Pfizer vaccines in this temperature for the rural population. The authority has confirmed that Sarawak will be using Cansino, a single-dose vaccine, for the rural population,” he said.

According to Lau, members of the public are urging the authorities to manage the health crisis with transparency.

“Besides making known places where there are new clusters, places visited by those who tested positive, we would like to know the actual health capacity.

“For example, what are the side effects of vaccinations? When will those who have not been vaccinated be getting theirs? What assistance will the authority be giving to those who would like to get vaccinated so that they can operate their business? What is the infection breakdown by age and occupations?” he asked.

On another note, Lau said the public welcomed the news that fully vaccinated people will be allowed to travel inter-district and interstate soon.

“This is a good move to enable reactivation of business or economic activities. We are glad to learn that details may be announced after Hari Raya Aidiladha,” he said.

Last week, the Ministry of Health had said the country will stop administering the Covid19 vaccine produced by China’s Sinovac once its supplies end, as it has a sufficient number of other vaccines for the national immunisation programme.

Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba told a news conference that the country has secured about 45 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, enough to cover 70 per cent of the population, compared to 16 million doses of Sinovac’s shot.

“About half of the 16 million have already been distributed, so the rest will be used to cover second doses.

“For those who have yet to be vaccinated, they will receive the Pfizer vaccine,” he was quoted as saying.