KJ explains why S'pore, Indonesia got vaccines before us

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said while Malaysia was not among the first to secure Covid-19 vaccines, that does not mean that procurement was slow.

In a statement today, Khairy said Japan will be securing vaccines in end-February - same as Malaysia - although Japan signed a deal in July last year, four months earlier than Malaysia. South Korea, which signed a deal in December 2020, will only get its vaccines in the third quarter of 2021.

Neighbouring Singapore and Indonesia, said Khairy, had unique circumstances which allowed them to roll out Covid-19...