Jakarta, CNN Indonesia –
Prime Minister Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, said it would be free vaccine corona virusCovid-19) for all its citizens and foreigners living for long periods of time (long-term residents).
As reported Associated Press, Monday (14/12), Lee stated that the Singapore government has approved the use of the Covid-19 vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech.
“After being studied through scientific research and clinical trials, the Singapore Health Research Agency approved the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine during a pandemic,” Lee said in a speech broadcast on local television.
Lee stated that they are also looking forward to the arrival of vaccines from other manufacturers in January 2021.
“If it goes according to plan, we will have sufficient vaccines for all Singaporeans by the third half of 2021,” Lee continued.
Lee stated that the Covid-19 vaccination process would be carried out without coercion. He said he and a number of elderly cabinet members would first be injected with the vaccine, to show the vaccine was safe.
Lee said Singapore budgeted more than US $ 1 billion (around Rp.10.6 trillion) to get vaccines from various pharmaceutical manufacturers. Among others, Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna Inc, and Sinovac from China.
According to Lee, the priority groups to be vaccinated earlier are medical personnel, elderly and other vulnerable groups, then other residents.
“Once the vaccine is available, we can see the light at the end of this tunnel,” Lee said.
“The more of us who get vaccinated, the harder it will be for the virus to spread, and the safer it is for society,” said Lee.
Lee said the vaccination process will also strengthen Singapore’s economic recovery.
Separately, experts in the Singapore Covid-19 Vaccination Committee stated that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will not be given to pregnant women, people with low immunity and residents under 16 years of age.
The number of additional new Covid-19 cases in Singapore continues to decline to under ten people every day. To date, there have been 58,320 cases of Covid-19 in Singapore, and 29 of them died. According to data from the United Nations (UN), Singapore’s population currently numbers 5,850,342 people.
(AP / ayp)
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