Vaccine cert can function as ticket for Johor-S’pore travel, says Hasni

JOHOR BARU: Johor hopes the Federal Government will allow those who have received their full dosage of the Covid-19 vaccine to travel between Johor and Singapore.

Mentri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad said the state would propose the Federal Government consider that as part of the benefit of getting vaccinated.

He said those who received their vaccination would eventually be given certification indicating that they received the first and second dosage.

“Countries such as Singapore will also be producing such certification, so I will propose to the Federal Government that with the availability of this certification for individuals who have been vaccinated, there should be some kind of benefit in the ‘new normal’ where crossing borders are concerned.

“The state will make its suggestions and recommendation to the Federal Government on certain standard operating procedure on the reopening of the border with Singapore,” he said before receiving his first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine under the National Covid19 Immunisation Programme here yesterday.

Hasni said this when asked whether the state would propose the use of a “‘vaccine passport” for individuals to travel between Johor and Singapore.

As the one-year anniversary of the closure of the MalaysiaSingapore border looms, he plans to put forward the suggestions soon. The border has been closed since March 18 last year.

On a separate matter, Hasni gave his assurance that there would be no double standard in selecting the individuals who would first receive the vaccine.

“The list was prepared by the state government and later submitted to the Health Ministry.

“The ministry has also put in place various processes to ensure the vaccine would be first given to frontliners, both from the Health Ministry and other departments.

“There is no need to be worried. There is no issue of favouritism,” he said.

Hasni added that the state secretary, district officers and assemblymen were also regarded as frontliners as they too were involved in the war against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Some 35,100 frontliners in the state would be receiving a total of 70,200 doses of the vaccine during the first phase of the programme, with each receiving two doses.

Also receiving their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine were state police chief Comm Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, state Health director Datuk Dr Aman Rabu, and state health and environment committee chairman R. Vidyananthan.