Norezan Alias and Samantha Chen are two mothers whose children have registered to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
Last week, the Malaysian government said it would start vaccinating those under-18 with Pfizer-BioNTech from August, with priority given to those sitting for major examinations.
It comes after the World Health Organisation said that while it is less urgent to vaccinate children and adolescents, it did not discourage it.
Norezan said her eldest daughter Nur Irdina Noor Affandie, helped siblings Muhammad Faiz Noor Affandie, 16, and Nur Alysha Noor Affandie, 14, register for the vaccine.
“She did so as soon as she read the news that the government was opening up the vaccination to those below 18,” said Norezan, who would be receiving the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine on July 11.
“AZ was not my first choice, but at the moment, any vaccine is the best vaccine. I am glad I managed to get my appointment.”
Norezan said her children had no objection to being vaccinated as they realise how dangerous Covid-19 is.
“Moreover, the number of cases in Selangor is still high. We just have to take care of each other,” said Norezan.
“I doubt we can achieve herd immunity by year’s end, but my family and I have done our part by registering to be vaccinated.”
She added she would have better peace of mind once her children are vaccinated, especially when her son sits for his SPM examinations next year.
Norezan’s family is not the only one. Earlier this week, Twentytwo13 ran a story that teenagers welcomed the chance to be vaccinated.
Meanwhile, Chen said she had registered her kids to be vaccinated even though none were sitting for examinations this year.
“My eldest son (Abel Foong) is 15, while my daughters are 14 (Sally) and 12 (Susan),” said Chen.
“So many people are still waiting to be vaccinated. I figured I might as well put them on the list now, rather than later.
“We know how important it is to be protected, so I do not understand why so many are still hesitating to be vaccinated.
“Together, we can stop the spread of Covid-19.”
Anyway, today is the 466th day since the start of the original Movement Control Order, and this is the 55th weekly edition of ‘The MCO Diaries’.
DEATH TOLL GOES UP
Recoveries outpaced the number of new Covid-19 cases for the second straight week. Sadly, there were more deaths this week than the last.
In the last seven days, 42,413 patients were cured of the coronavirus, down from a record high of 51,547 last week. That means 657,739, or 91.02 per cent of patients have been given the all-clear by doctors.
We had 37,455 new cases in the past seven days, 1,338 less than a week ago. We passed 700,000 infections on Monday, and as of yesterday, we have had 722,659 cases.
Unfortunately, we had 19 more deaths this week than the last – 527 – taking the number of fatalities to 4,803.
Worldwide, there are 180.8 million cases, with 3.9 million fatalities.
OUR NEW GREETING
“Dah makan?” has been the ‘national greeting’ since forever, but it now looks like we have a new one.
Come to a point that our ice-breaker question has gone from "dah makan?" to "dah vaksin?" 😅
— எட்வர்ட் சாமிநாதன் (@edsaminathan) June 25, 2021
BANKING WOES
I had trouble resetting my online banking password as I could not receive the OTP (one-time password). Despite checking with the staff and telco, I’m still unable to proceed.
It is a good thing I do not have much money in the account, and the incident reminded me of this.
I AM RICH, SORT OF
I received this SMS last Saturday. I was hesitant at first, but eventually tried the PIN. Lo and behold, it was legitimate, and I received RM0.20 in the account.
Never say no to free money!
AIR-FRYER BONELESS BUFFALO WINGS
Nearly everyone I know owns an air fryer. It is a convenient way to cook, and my colleague, Pearl Lee, recently made half-boiled eggs in them!
Here is one recipe I cannot wait to try.
IT SOUNDS BETTER, THIS WAY
ALL THE BEST
We end this week’s column with another song from the great John Prine.
Stay safe, folks.
