SIBU: More than a quarter of the traders at Pasar Minggu Sibu in Taman Indah, Teku here have not registered for Covid-19 vaccination programme yet.
Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) chairman Clarence Ting Ing Horh discovered this when he visited the market on Sunday.
“From our survey at this market, many traders do not want to be vaccinated. They claim to have certain diseases such as high blood pressure, heart problems and diabetes which prevent them from getting the jabs.
“I have told them the council will make it compulsory for all traders in markets under the SMC jurisdiction as well as owners of business premises to receive the Covid-19 vaccines.
“I understand those who have the diseases can be given the Covid-19 vaccines,” he said.
Ting added that most of those who registered for the vaccination programme were Iban traders at the market.
He hoped that the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) would promote the Covid-19 vaccination programme to the people.
He added that traders in all SMC markets should be aware of the benefits of Covid-19 vaccination.
Clarence Ting talks to hawkers and traders at the Pasar Minggu Sibu about the importance of the Covid-19 vaccination. 
“It is important to convince the public that the vaccination programme is safe and important for restoring normalcy.
“Look at the situation in this market. Not many people come here because the community is still worried about the pandemic.
“If all of us, including the traders here, get the jabs, I think the situation can return to normal. Only the vaccines can revive the market bustle as before,” he explained.
During the visit, Ting also brought along volunteers from Sibu Junior Chamber International (JCI) and SMC staff to help traders in the market register for the vaccination.
He said in the short one-hour visit, they only managed to register 25 people out of 68 traders in the market.
Earlier, Sibu Divisional Disaster Management Committee Coordinator Dr Annuar Rapaee revealed that 93,801 eligible people in Sibu had not yet registered for the vaccination.
