by BERNAMA / pic by TMR FILE 

PRIME Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob advised teachers who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19 to get the vaccine immediately to protect themselves and their students.

Although the vaccination is not compulsory for teachers, he said, they are at risk of increasing the infection as they will face their students when the face-to-face teaching and learning sessions begin.

“For example, primary school teachers who have not been vaccinated, they are putting their students at risk, and also that of their fellow teachers (of being infected). That is why the Education Ministry is firm.

“If we are not vaccinated and our presence can endanger others, then we should take the responsibility to protect our colleagues and more importantly, the students,” he added.

The PM said this at the presentation of computers to students in the Bera parliamentary constituency at SMK Bera Bandar 32 yesterday.

Also present was Pahang education director Mohammad Rosli Abdul Rahman. According to Ismail Sabri, teachers who do not get vaccinated will not be able to enjoy the privileges given to those who have been vaccinated, like inter-state travels.

On the presentation of the IT devices to the students, Ismail Sabri, who is Bera MP, said he hoped it would help the students to improve in their studies.

“We hope they use the device properly and make full use of it to help them excel in their studies, and now that they have the devices, Internet access is important, and for that, I have instructed parties involved to upgrade (Internet coverage) in areas where Internet access is unsatisfactory,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Rosli said the 98% of teachers in Pahang have been vaccinated, while 88% of students aged between 12 and 17 had also been vaccinated.

He also said 167 students in Pahang lost their parents to Covid-19. On the presentation of the IT devices, he said, it targeted 11,052 students in 132 schools, and so far, 9,429 of them, or 92%, have received theirs.

The others would receive theirs in stages, he added.