ALOR GAJAH: It took almost a week for family members to persuade 92-year-old Puchat Lubak, believed to be the oldest resident in the Bukit Payung Orang Asli Village, to finally agree to be given the Covid-19 vaccine.

       She received her jab at a mobile vaccination centre which went to the village yesterday.

       Puchat was accompanied by her granddaughter, Asiah Jegap, 37.

       Her condition was closely monitored by health personnel there after she was given the jab.

       Puchat claimed to be more than 100 years old, although her identity card put her birth year as 1929.

       She said she agreed to receive the vaccine because she was scared of being infected with the virus.

       “The injection is not painful at all,” she said in the dialect of the Temuan Orang Asli tribe, translated by Asiah.

       Asiah explained that she and other family members took almost a week to get Puchat to agree to the vaccination.

       “She believes in traditional medicine and has been relying on herbs to keep her healthy.

       “She finally agreed after we told her that the disease was becoming more serious,” she added.

       Another villager, Rami Song Song, 62, who said she is afraid of needles, also agreed to be given the vaccine after being coaxed by her children to do so.

       “My children said there is nothing to be afraid of, and after thinking about the safety of my children and grandchildren, I decided to get vaccinated,” she added.

       A total of 314 Orang Asli in the village received their first dose of the Sinovac vaccine under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme at the Mara Liner mobile vaccination centre. — Bernama