Klang MP Charles Santiago has lauded a new Covid-19 vaccination centre (PPV) that will start operating at the Klang Hokkien Association Hall tomorrow with the capacity of inoculating 2,000 people a day.
This is as Klang, Selangor is one of the areas in the country most affected by the virus, Charles said, but is struggling with a low fully vaccinated rate of 11.64 percent.
"This is a public-public cooperation project as the Hokkien Hall is teaming up with the National Cancer Society of Malaysia.
"This is a public-public partnership effort between the government and NGOs and I am hopeful that it is a new model that can help reach the more marginalised and vulnerable sectors.
"In addition, several new PPVs will start operating in Klang and vaccination rates in existing PPVs will also be enhanced," Charles told Malaysiakini.
He said two other centres at the Soka Gakkai hall and the Kemuning Utama hall will also be commencing operations tomorrow, while centres at the Wyndham Hotel, Premier Hotel, and the Pandamaran Sports Complex will have upgraded capacity.
"This will allow Klang's vaccination capacity to be boosted to nearly 20,000 a day," he added.
The MP said there is an estimated 942,000 people who are 18 and above in the Klang district, as well as 200,000 foreign workers, including undocumented migrants and refugees. This means the number of people eligible for the vaccine is estimated at 1.14 million.
"As of July 21, a total of 87,803 (11.64 percent) in the Klang District has been fully vaccinated with two doses, while 208,055 have received the first dose.
"This rate shows that the Klang district has the second-lowest vaccination rate in the state," he lamented.
Charles said that prior to this, many Klang residents found that their vaccination appointments were one district over in Shah Alam.
"My office has been under pressure several times and made follow-up calls to the ministry to increase vaccination rates in Klang with the opening of new PPVs.
"With an estimated vaccination capacity of 20,000 a day, group immunisation of 80 percent, will take 63 days to achieve, while 100 percent immunisation is estimated to take 83 days with all PPVs operating at full capacity," he added.
He emphasised that the vaccination will still require coordination with the MySejahtera app.
Charles pointed out that Klang has three ports, making it the logistics heart of the country, adding that important sectors such as medicine, food, and manufacturing are concentrated in this district.
"Vaccination for all workers immediately is very important to reduce Covid-19 infection rates and protect family members.
"My office constantly receives calls from families infected with Covid-19 and most of the time unvaccinated patients were found to reach critical levels and the probability of a patient dying is high," he added. - Mkini
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