Shahelmey
KOTA KINABALU: Community Development and People’s Wellbeing Minister Shahelmey Yahya slammed the opposition for accusing the state government of being weak in handling Covid-19 cases in Sabah.
Shahelmey in a statement on Saturday described the recent allegations by opposition leaders such as Parti Warisan Sabah president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and DAP Sabah chairman Datuk Frankie Poon, as merely playing with political sentiments without looking at the real facts.
“As the state and country are figthing against the Covid-19 pandemic, they are endlessly playing political sentiments. The state government is and continues to work hard with the state Health Department and Health Ministry in providing the best service for the sake of the people’s wellbeing and safety,” said Shahelmey.
He was responding to allegations by Shafie and Poon as well as other opposition leaders who have questioned the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government’s commitment in combating the Covid-19 pandemic.
Poon, who is former state Health Minister, blamed the state government for policies implemented and weaknesses that occurred while Shafie called on the government to take responsibility for the increased Covid-19 infections in Sabah.
Shahelmey in his statement said that the state government is confident that 60 per cent of Sabahans will receive the first dose of Covid-19 vaccines by early September, meaning that before the end of the month, more than 60 per cent of the rakyat in the state will be fully vaccinated.
He added that with the addition of the single-dose CanSino vaccine, the state government will be able to get 80 per cent of the population in Sabah vaccinated before the end of October.
Shahelmey, who is the state’s health exco, also said that even though admissions to hospitals are high, the number of beds is sufficent and the state Health Department and Health Ministry have contingency plans in place should more beds are needed.
“This is the same for ventilators, there are sufficient for the current situation,” he said.
As for the high number of cases of infection recorded in Sabah lately, Shahelmey reminded the rakyat to continue abiding strictly with the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) implemented by the government.
“This is because the Covid-19 virus is already in the community and this we know based on the Covid-19 screening done. Therefore in order to control the infection rate and while the government works toward achieving herd imminity, we must exercise self discipline, stay at home and only go out when necessary,” he stressed.
“I hereby call on all quarters, including opposition leaders to also play their role in ensuring the success of the national immunization program to ensure that all the rakyat in Sabah are vaccinated.
“Take a break from pointing fingers and throwing allegations because when Warisan and its allies were in power in Sabah last year, the Covid-19 infection situation was different from what we are experiencing now,” he pointed out.
It is better for the opposition to work with the government and give constructive suggestions for the sake of the people’s welfare instead of playing with political sentiment to garner popularity, opined Shahelmey.
On the issue of insufficient vaccines in Sabah, Shahelmey pointed out that it was because of the positive response from people in the state to the vaccination program.
“Due to the good response, we have increase the number of vaccines to be adminstered daily to more than 50,000 doses daily. Even with the limited supply of vaccines available now, we were still able to administer 53,655 doses on Friday,” he said.