JOHOR BARU, Aug 25 ― The majority of Persons with Disabilities (PWD) in the country have no issues with taking the Covid-19 vaccine because they are aware of its importance in fighting the pandemic, Senator Datuk Ras Adiba Radzi said today.
The OKU Sentral Association president said guardians or family members of PWD are the ones sceptical and worried about the Covid-19 vaccinations.
“At present, we still do not have statistics on how many of persons with disabilities have received the vaccine, but overall the general consensus is that they are not against it,” said Ras Adiba after officiating the OKU Sentral drive-through vaccination centre (PPV) at the Johor Baru City Council Aquatic Centre in Larkin here today.
Also present was Johor Baru Mayor Datuk Noorazam Osman and KPJ Puteri Specialist Hospital executive director Khairun Ahmad.
Ras Adiba pointed out that the majority of PWD do not reject the Covid-19 vaccine as they know the importance of receiving medical treatment.
She added that as of today, an estimated 600,000 PWD are registered with the Social Welfare Department (JKM).
“According to the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) data, it is estimated that a total of 15 per cent of the total population of a country are disabled individuals.
“Going by the statistics, it is estimated that there are more than four million Malaysians who are disabled. However, we do not have the exact figures,” said Ras Adiba.
Meanwhile, Noorazam said, the OKU Sentral’s drive-through PPV is the largest one in Malaysia and can provide up to 20,000 Covid-19 vaccine injections during the two months of its operation.
“The PPV started operations today with an estimated 400 recipients, specifically for individuals with disabilities, the elderly and their caretakers.
“In this regard, we advise the target group to immediately register to receive the vaccine injection by driving here in an effort to achieve herd immunity as targeted by the government,” explained Noorazam.
