BY NEVILLE TIMOTHY SANDERS & LILIANA SHERYN
KUCHING: A discussion with several parties to find a possible solution on how to curb rabies will be held soon, said Datuk Seri Dr Sim Kui Hian.
The Deputy Premier stated that he would meet Minister for Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom for the intermediate measures.
He said this in a response to a case during Labour Day (May 1) where a rabid dog bit nine people in the vicinity of RH Plaza here.
“My advice to the people right now is to continue to be fully aware whenever you see dogs in your area.
“Because they might carry the disease, and although the Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) Sarawak is currently doing routine surveillance, the best is for the public to stay informed,” he said.
He said this when met by reporters after attending the press conference for the upcoming 54th Asia Pacific Consortium for Public Health 2023 (APADPH2023) at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) yesterday.
Dr Sim, who is also Public Health, Housing and Local Government Minister, urged members of the public to get vaccinated for rabies and immediately head to the nearest clinic if they got bitten by a dog.
“If you got vaccinated, 99.9 per cent chance you will survive, and if you do not get vaccinated, then it will cause death among the public and we do not want that to happen,” he added.
Earlier, Kuching South City Council (MBKS) had considered lodging a police report to probe the source of a possible exposure to rabies.
Mayor of MBKS Datuk Wee Hong Seng said the stray black dog was trapped by a group of volunteers following an alert posted on social media page and the DVS has confirmed that it was tested positive for rabies.
