By Aisyah Azzahra Suhiri
KUCHING: The general public are of the opinion that the standard operating procedures (SOPs) enforced by Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) is a smart move to ensure the public’s safety.
The SOPs announced by SDMC on Aug 23 stated that only fully vaccinated individuals are allowed to work or enter business premises.
Some quarters described the latest SOPs as discriminative against those who are unvaccinated.
However, some members of the public noted that relaxation should also be applied to those who are not vaccinated despite being at risk of infecting others.
In a public poll by New Sarawak Tribune yesterday (Aug 29), most agreed that the relaxation should be done while adhering to the SOPs considering the high number of cases.
Nur Puteri Sabrina Mohamad, Student
I agree that relaxations should be given to vaccinated individuals. However, they should not lower their guards in adhering to the SOPs given the alarming number of Delta variant cases in Sarawak.
Ayu Zurriha Juzi, Entrepreneur
Relaxations given to fully vaccinated people are one way for us to resume normalcy and given the high rate of infection, those who are not vaccinated should not be given the same relaxations to protect everyone’s well-being.
Khairul Hanif Ibrahim, General worker
It is a good move to create a safe space especially for those who are working as being vaccinated is proven to lower the risk of contracting the virus aside from following the SOPs.
Fairuz Dhaiyuddin Mohd Shapiee, Technician
I second SDMC’s move. It is better to be safe than sorry these days, considering the dominance of the Delta variant and even with the relaxations, it’s important for everyone to comply with the SOPs for our safety.
Philemon Felix, Chef
The vaccine is proven to be effective against the virus and I agree with the relaxation. However, I think that it should also be extended to unvaccinated individuals for them to resume their daily life, but they will need to take extra precautions.
Zulali Abu Bakar, Primary school teacher
It’s good that only fully vaccinated people are allowed to go to work because some jobs are not suitable to be done from home. This also allows them to perform better, but everyone should adhere to the SOPs and never let their guard down.
