No link between empty syringe and vaccine-selling syndicate, says Khairy

PUTRAJAYA: National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) Coordinating Minister Khairy Jamaluddin stressed that there was no connection between the empty vaccine syringe case and the syndicate selling COVID-19 vaccine in the country.

"Out of the 16 million doses administered, only 13 police reports have been lodged on the issue of empty vaccine syringe shots by Health Ministry staff at several vaccination centres (PPVs)," he told a press conference here today.

Khairy said that of the 13 police reports lodged, only one case where negligence on the part of the vaccinator had occurred while the rest had no solid evidence.

For the case in Sungai Petani, Kedah, he said the reason given was due to exhaustion and the nurse was issued a warning and currently undergoing a disciplinary process.

On two more cases involving PPV in Banting and Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC), Khairy said the recipients were given an additional dose of the vaccine due to confusion.

Apart from that, Khairy said there were complainants who lodged police reports because they did not have side effects such as injection site pain.

The Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation apologised for those cases where there was human negligence and called on Malaysians to continue to encourage the frontline workers who are struggling to give the vaccine, thus fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

To ensure the issue of empty vaccination did not recur, Khairy said vaccine recipients were allowed to record their vaccination process at the PPV.

"You can record a video of yourself receiving the vaccine, so that we will have solid proof that you received proper dosage," he said.

-- BERNAMA