IPOH: The Perak government is hoping that Selangor will loan vaccine doses to the state to help it speed up its Covid-19 inoculation rate.

       Mentri Besar Datuk Saarani Mohamad (pic) said the state administration had sent a letter to the Selangor government requesting to borrow vaccine doses.

       “Perak has used up almost all its vaccine supplies. To date, we have received over two million doses of four different types of vaccine.

       “Our state Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force has been working hard to add more vaccine doses in the state. However, there has been a delay in the supply by the Federal Government,” he said during the Perak state assembly sitting here yesterday.

       Saarani added that the state welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob that the vaccination rate in six states, including Perak, would be accelerated so that they could have 50% of their adult population fully vaccinated by the end of September.

       During the winding-up speech by state health, environmental and green technology committee chairman Mohd Akmal Kamaruddin, Opposition assemblymen Nga Kor Ming (Aulong), Tan Kar Hing (Simpang Pulai) and Howard Lee (Pasir Pinji) raised their concern regarding the vaccination programme and Covid-19 management in the state.

       Separately, Saarani said the state would urge the Federal Government to conduct research on giving Covid-19 vaccine jabs to school children.

       “If teachers and school administrators are vaccinated, students should be too.

       “The decision to vaccinate schoolchildren will be made at the federal level, so on behalf of the state assembly, I call for research to be conducted on this matter,” he said when answering a question from Kepayang assemblyman Dr Ko Chung Sen.

       The Mentri Besar also revealed that there were about 150 private vaccination centres (PPV) in the state.

       “Kinta district has the largest number of private PPV with 58, followed by Manjung with 22 and Larut Matang Selama, 16,” he said when replying to Nga, who had urged the state government to set up private PPV.