‘Onus on authorities to allay people’s fear over polls being held amidst pandemic’

KUCHING: The relevant authorities must continue to identify and resolve issues on the ground to allay fear amongst some people over the state election being held amidst the current Covid-19 situation.

Federation of Chinese Associations in Kuching, Samarahan and Serian District (Youth Section) treasurer Aaron Tay said these were the concerns raised by many members of the public.

“While the (caretaker) government is preparing for the upcoming state polls, it is important to have eyes and ears on the ground, especially with Sarawak still not out of the woods yet with regard to Covid19.

“This would also help the government in formulating workable and successful solutions, as well as plans and policies,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Tay said he had received feedback from many people, who were hoping for the state election to be held safely and also for the process of electing a new government to run smoothly without major Covid19 outbreak or any untoward incident because if not, they feared that their lives and also businesses would be adversely affected again.

“As the Emergency Proclamation has ended, we need to face the election; hence, the most important thing to do now is to ensure a smooth and safe election.

“We cannot afford to put our lives and our livelihoods at risk, so we hope that the next state government could focus on saving businesses and livelihoods, as well as economic recovery, going forward.

“It has been nearly two years since Covid-19 struck; everyone is eager to regain a sense of normalcy,” said Tay, who is a businessman.

Adding on, he said the authorities should also address issues related to Covid-19 third and booster doses, in that some eligible recipients were hesitant to receive these shots, which were meant to provide optimal protection against the virus.