AS the vaccination effort is ramping up in Penang to achieve its herd immunity target, the Batu Lancang service centre is playing its role to get its constituents vaccinated.
Its assemblyman Ong Ah Teong said the most important task was to get the elderly, aged above 70, to be inoculated.
He said his team had received feedback that 31 senior citizens who had registered themselves for the vaccine have yet to be called up.
“Hence, our team had submitted a list of their names to the state Health Department for their perusal. We are expecting some arrangement to be finalised for them within a week.
“Our next task is to send those senior citizens without any transportation to the vaccination centres (PPVs).
“Our service centre is also coordinating with the Village Community Management Council (MPKK). There are seven volunteers who are responsible for the transportation purposes.
“To date, we have assisted 40 senior citizens by providing free transport service for them to PPVs,” he told Buletin Mutiara.
Ong added that his service centre also has provided a 16-litre disinfectant to the Joint Management Body (JMB) and Management Committee (MC) of the apartments in his constituency for free.
“The JMB and MC can disinfect their premises themselves to reduce the risk of infection.
“On top of that, we are also collecting the particulars of hawkers, who have yet to receive vaccines.
“We want to help the people of Batu Lancang in whatever way we can,” he said.
Buletin Mutiara also spoke to a few representatives of hawker centres and wet markets.
Goh Kok Joo, 39, a representative of Batu Lancang hawker centre, said 95% of the hawkers have yet to be vaccinated.
“I am in the midst of collecting their names and will pass it to YB Ong’s service centre soon.
“Ong is doing a great job here as he cares for everyone of us. He has even managed to get an affordable price for us to do our swab tests in a private hospital.
“Good job YB,” he said.
Echoing Goh was Batu Lancang Market chairman Poh Chai Lee, who praised the elected representative for looking into the constituents’ welfare.
Poh, in the meantime, said he was also collecting some of the market traders’ details for vaccination.
“Everything goes well so far,” he said, adding that the market has been sanitised frequently.
Jelutong Market treasurer Chew Kok Guan said he was optimistic to get market traders to register for vaccination.
“So far, I don’t have any figures on my side but I can say that many of them have stepped forward.
“It’s a positive feedback thus far,” he added.
Story by Edmund Lee
Pix courtesy of interviewees and YB Ong’s service centre