PARENTS are still reluctant to get their children vaccinated against Covid-19, citing horror stories of the side effects some kids have suffered from.

They told The Malaysian Insight that it also did not help that the authorities kept increasing the number of vaccine shots.

Some of them said they trusted the double-shot vaccine until the government introduced the booster jab and persuaded everyone to take it.

But the main reason why they are reluctant to have their children vaccinated is the many reports of major side effects children faced.

A parent who only wanted to be known as Steven said he is still not ready to get his son vaccinated anytime soon.

“The number of cases is dropping, so I’m not that worried, compared with the same time last year,” said the 32-year-old.

“Also, I’ve been seeing many reports of major side effects faced by children, with some even dying.

“I got most worried after seeing news of Revnesh Kumar, which went viral,” said Steven, who has a 14-year-old son.

Steven was referring to the case of 13-year-old Revnesh, who died suddenly after being vaccinated. The cause of death could not be ascertained even after a post-mortem.

This case received wide publicity after Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin met Revnesh’s parents but they were not satisfied with the outcome of the meeting, with the mother suggesting the ministry was trying to write off the possibility her son died due to the vaccine.

Meanwhile, another parent, Ahmad Asyraf, 36, said he would give his daughter the vaccine when the time comes.

“I trusted the vaccine very much until the second dose and when the government told us to take the third jab, I started having many questions,” he said.

“If at all the vaccine works perfectly, why do we have to take until three jabs?

“It is likely now we would be told to take another jab.”

Ahmad said there are trust issues at play and he was not willing to put his daughter at risk.

“Perhaps next year when I’m fully convinced that the vaccine is safe for my daughter, then I’ll give it to her,” he said.

M. Ganesh, 42, said he will wait and see how the other children react to the vaccine before deciding to get his son vaccinated.

“My son is the only child in the family and I’m not willing to take the risk with him.

“Furthermore, we take all the necessary precautions and strictly follow the standard operating procedures,” he said, adding that he and his wife are vaccinated.

Parents Action Group for Education chairman Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim, however, insisted that parents should vaccinate their children.

“There are unvaccinated teachers in their midst and who have now been allowed to teach face to face, so it’s best if the kids are vaccinated,” said Noor Azimah.

She said parent-teacher associations are also urging parents to have their children vaccinated but this is a personal matter and parents should not be arm-twisted.

She said if parents are adamant about not vaccinating their children, it is unlikely they will change their minds.

Khairy last month announced that the government will not reach its target of 50% vaccination rate for children this month and, therefore, will end the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children on Sunday.

“Those who don’t come for their first dose by May 15 won’t be given Pfizer shots for free, or Sinovac for that matter. You will need to pay for it from the market where only Sinovac is available,” he had said.

“We will keep some stock for the kids turning five soon, so please get it for free before May 15 when the programme ends.”

As of Monday, a total of 945,787 children aged between five and 11 years in the country, or 26.6% of their population, have completed the vaccination.

According to the CovidNow website, 1.56 million children, or 43.9% of the same population, have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

For adolescents aged between 12 and 17, a total of 2.9 million individuals, or 93.2% of their population, have completed the vaccination, while 2.99 million individuals, or 96.3%, have received at least one dose of the vaccine. – May 11, 2022.