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Bersatu leader urges govt to set closing date for vaccination sign-up

Bersatu leader urges govt to set closing date for vaccination sign-up
Bersatu leader urges govt to set closing date for vaccination sign-up

A Bersatu leader has urged Putrajaya to set a deadline for Covid-19 vaccination registration to boost the country's flagging inoculation campaign.

Bersatu information chief Wan Saiful Wan Jan said that this would create a sense of urgency among the people.

"It is time for the government to set a closing date for vaccination registration. All citizens must register before that date.

"For example, say it is fixed at the end of July. With a closing date set, I am confident that more people will feel it is important for them to register now.

"Then, all government and NGO efforts can be mobilised to make the vaccination registration campaign a success in the stipulated time," he said in a statement today.

Wan Saiful called on everyone to register, saying that this is the only way to win the war against Covid-19.

He added that as is, the sign-up percentage for the jab was still unsatisfactory.

"(I am) not denying some may face difficulties in signing up for Covid-19 vaccination, various efforts of outreach are being taken and should be done by the government to help them.

"But many are not serious and want to wait and see before doing so. Some are taking it easy or keep procrastinating from registering. Apart from that, there is also propaganda from the anti-vaxxer group.

"All this has resulted in a low registration rate," he said.

In March, the Malaysian Medical Association also came up with a similar view to speed up the country’s mass inoculation programme.

However, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the government would not do so despite the low registration rate.

Health portal CodeBlue reported that the vaccination registration has started levelling off, reaching just over half of the adult population as of June 7 after some three months since registrations opened.

As of June 11, a total of 1.30 million Malaysians had been fully vaccinated, while 1.63 million individuals had received their first shot.