Police dismiss vaccine recipient’s claims, probe partner’s tweets

Police have dismissed allegations about discrepancies during a man’s vaccination process at the Bangi Avenue Convention Centre.

They are now investigating the man’s girlfriend under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA) for tweeting about the July 17 incident.

In a statement today, Kajang district police chief Mohd Zaid Hassan (above) said his team had concluded that the incident had been a “misunderstanding”.

“As a result of the investigation, police found that staff at the vaccine administration centre (PPV) in question had engaged and clearly explained the vaccination procedure to the man.

“And the recipient was satisfied.

“This was a misunderstanding whereby the man thought he had been injected with a blank vaccine but in actuality, he was injected with the Sinovac vaccine,” he posted on the district police headquarters’ Facebook page.

The man in question, who only wanted to be identified as Ariff, previously told Malaysiakini that he was shown an empty vaccine vial when at the vaccination station.

After he began staring at the empty vial, he said the vaccinator apologised and reached for a new vial before administering a dose on him per standard operating procedure.

He was suspicious and concerned because the vaccinator allegedly did not explain why she had shown him an empty vial in the first place.

Zaid said he received a report from the PPV denying tweets alleging Ariff had almost received a blank jab but allegedly none from the latter.

When contacted, Ariff clarified that he did in fact lodge a police report defending his account of events at the Pandan Indah police station yesterday evening (July 19).

Malaysiakini has sighted the report.

Investigating girlfriend’s tweets

Following Ariff’s experience last Saturday, his girlfriend had tweeted about how he was “almost scammed” by a blank jab and cautioned the public to ensure they received full doses of the vaccine.

Her tweets were widely read and shared, prompting a reply from the authorities.

In his statement today, Zaid said the police had investigated the tweets under Section 233 of the CMA.

The section concerns the improper use of network facilities or a network service. Upon conviction, one is liable for a maximum RM50,000 fine, one year jail or both.

One is also liable for a further RM1,000 fine for every day the offence continues after conviction.

“The case has been investigated by the police under Section 233 of the CMA and the investigation found that the tweets were made by the vaccine recipient’s girlfriend. This caused (the incident) to go viral and caused negative perceptions in society.

“The public is advised to be careful when making any statements when they are unsure of the truth. Especially for sensitive issues like vaccination.

“This will prevent misconceptions or skewed views from society, which can cause worries and disrupt public order when it comes to vaccination issues,” Zaid said.

Malaysiakini has contacted Zaid regarding the status of this CMA investigation. - Mkini