Siti Hasmah explains why she got Covid-19 vaccine
Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali, the wife of former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, said she received the Covid-19 vaccine because she is a senior citizen and wanted to encourage others to do the same.
This was after Siti Hasmah and her husband, who is also the Langkawi MP, were vaccinated last Sunday.
Both received their first of two jabs at the Langkawi Sports Complex, which is acting as a vaccine administration centre.
"I came to Langkawi island to accompany my husband, who is the MP and is qualified for the vaccine.
"As for me, I am a senior citizen. I'm not here to get the vaccine because I am the wife of an MP, but as a senior citizen who can somewhat encourage the people in Langkawi to get this vaccine," she said in a video message.
The government is in the midst of rolling out the first phase of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme, the country's largest vaccination effort in history.
According to the guidelines by the special committee on Covid-19 vaccine supply, the first phase is reserved for medical frontliners, enforcement personnel, welfare officers, teachers and serious comorbidities and elected representatives.
Phase 2 will begin in April, involving 9.4 million people classified as high-risk, including senior citizens, the disabled and people with serious comorbidities.
The government plans to complete the vaccination of this group by August.
The third phase will be for the remaining people living in Malaysia aged 18 and above and will run from May until February 2022.
Siti Hasmah, in her video message, noted that some people are still unsure about the vaccine.
However, she said even if people are still in two minds, they should still register for vaccination first.
"I understand that there are those among us who are still cautious and worried about complications or side effects.
"But that's okay. If people want to wait, at least register first. Perhaps after two shots, people see that other people and I are still healthy, they may change their minds, and it will be easy as their names are already registered," she added.
Relating her experience of getting the vaccine, she said that it was no more than a sting.
"There was nothing much. It didn't hurt. People say all kinds of things - that it hurts, that the needle is long, but it's only like an ant bite. That's all," she said.
