(From left) Amilia Chai, Abang Mohd Firdaus Abang Maludin and Gabriellia Hazel.
KUCHING: Sarawakians are generally positive about the Covid-19 vaccination programme expected to start on Feb 27, with frontliners and high-risk groups being the first to be vaccinated against the contagious virus.
Amilia Chai, a pharmacist, said that citizens should not be worried about the safety and efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccine as large clinical trials and numerous data had proven the vaccine to be safe and effective against the virus.
“I can’t wait for the vaccine to completely crush this outbreak. All I could say is if you want all these to end, you need to take vaccine,” she told The Borneo Post.
Still, Chai cautioned that it was important to be aware that ‘safe’ did not necessarily mean ‘zero side effects’, as taking the Covid-19 vaccine may cause temporary mild side effects – primarily headache, chills, fatigue, muscle pain or fever.
“However, the potential benefits far outweigh the potential side-effects. It confers on you the protection of not getting into severe symptoms of Covid-19 which has a much higher chance of causing long-term effects on you.”
Though the vaccination programme has yet to enter full swing, Chai also reminded that even vaccinated individuals must continue to wear masks and avoid indoor crowds.
Abang Mohd Firdaus Abang Maludin, a lawyer, believed the government should promote greater awareness regarding the vaccine and to furnish the relevant data and information on the vaccine’s efficacy to instil confidence among the public.
“To get to the bottom of the story, let’s say the vaccination programme is proven to be reliable in guarding against the Covid-19, then why not (to be vaccinated). If the vaccine is reliable then there is no reason to be afraid of it.”
Saying that according to multiple reports the vaccine is safe and effective to be administered, Abang Mohd Firdaus was optimistic that people would soon be able to gradually return to a more normal routine once they are vaccinated.
Gabriellia Hazel, who works as a hotelier, expressed concerns over the effects of the Covid-19 vaccine that might have on her body but she remained confident the vaccination programme was the right way to win the battle against the pandemic once and for all.
“I did read the prescription, whereas you might be going to have rashes on your skin, itchiness, feeling tired and other side effects initially after being injected the vaccine. This vaccination programme does worry me as I don’t know how the vaccine would react to my body,” she said.
Nonetheless, Gabriellia said the vaccine would finally be able to break the chain of transmission of the Covid-19 and provide much awaited relief to the frontliners, especially healthcare workers, who had been working relentlessly the past year to contain the outbreak.
On Monday, Sarawak Health Department director Dr Chin Zin Hing had said the first phase of Covid-19 immunisation in the state will involve over 40,000 frontliners being injected with the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. The first phase of immunisation is expected to be completed at the end of March.
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