Vaccinated senior citizens urge public to register

KANGAR: Several senior citizens who have completed their vaccination under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme have urged the public to stop worrying about getting inoculated.

Some among the almost 1,000 senior citizens who received the vaccine at the Dewan 2020 vaccination centre yesterday said they were not easily swayed by the spread of fake news on social media claiming that the second dose causes complications to recipients.

A statement by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry Quick Response Team said the claims were untrue and advised the public not to disseminate such information.

Meanwhile, one of the vaccine recipients, Shukor Shamsuddin, 74, from Taman Guru Jaya, expressed hope that the public would not be affected by the negative claims as the vaccine administered was safe.

“I wonder why there are still those, especially educated people, who are still afraid to get vaccinated. In fact, there are still many who have yet to register,” he said.

Shukor, who is former director of the Perlis social welfare department, said he did not feel sick during or after receiving the second or first dose of the vaccine.

Another recipient, former Perlis footballer, Salim Muhamad, 72, urged those affected by the negative claims to immediately register for vaccination as it would not only save themselves but also help others to form group or herd immunity.

“Those who are afraid of getting vaccinated are lying to themselves as we all know that we need to put in some effort when facing a disaster or disease,” he said.

Former lorry driver Suban@Ani Hassan, 73, from Nesam in Bintong said he wondered why many urban residents and educated people were afraid to get inoculated, while he and many friends who were lorry drivers and farmers were responding positively to the government’s call to get vaccinated.

“For us villagers, in our minds, if we don’t get the vaccine shot then we will be more susceptible to the Covid19 virus. If we contract the virus, it will not only threaten our own lives but also the lives of our family members, neighbours and the general public,” he said.