PETALING JAYA: Almost 29,000 civil servants have yet to get their Covid-19 vaccinations, says Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad (pic).

       "Based on data from the Communicable Diseases Centre under the Public Service Department (PSD), about 1.8% (28,800) out of an estimated 1.6 million civil servants have refused or yet to receive vaccination," he said when replying a question raised by Chan Foong Hin (PH-Kota Kinabalu) in Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday (Nov 10).

       Dr Abdul Latiff added that PSD has yet to finalise the numbers of civil servants who had been penalised for refusing the vaccination after Nov 1 this year.

       The PSD made it mandatory for all civil servants to receive the Covid-19 vaccine by Nov 1 to ensure that public services are carried out smoothly.

       This rule is in line with the government’s efforts to restore its services to operate at maximum capacity based on the current National Recovery Plan (NRP) phase.

       Officers who cannot be vaccinated due to health complications must submit their verified medical statements from a government medical officer to their department heads.

       Those who still remain unvaccinated from Nov 1 without being exempted for health issues will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993.

       In September, the PSD noted that 98% of civil servants have been vaccinated, with the remaining 1.6% (16,902) yet to register.

       On disciplinary action against the errant civil servants, Dr Abdul Latiff said this could include issuance of warnings, freezing promotions and docking salaries.

       "There are procedures that need to be followed before disciplinary action can be taken.

       "This includes the department heads issuing show-cause letters to officers where they will have 21 days to reply," he added.

       If the reason given for not wanting to get vaccinated was unsatisfactory, Dr Abdul Latiff said the officer would then undergo a domestic inquiry and be referred to the department's disciplinary committee for appropriate action.

       Meanwhile, Datuk Mohd Fasiah Mohd Fakeh (PN-Sabak Bernam) said he was informed that there were about 2,500 teachers who are anti-vaxxers.

       "What other options can be taken against them to ensure they get vaccinated?

       "They have teaching options and this could affect the teaching,".

       Dr Abdul Latiff noted that the PSD's Nov 1 directive for mandatory vaccination was aimed at ensuring the nation's public delivery system was fully optimised.

       "For example, if the teacher is trained to teach mathematics, transferring the teacher to another area will not solve the problem," he said.

       As such, he said that mandatory action was necessary to ensure that the public delivery system was not affected.