This comes after Penang health committee chairman Norlela Ariffin questioned whether the pair had performed miracles after being given roles in the state’s handling of the pandemic, while bristling at their criticisms of her performance and claiming the DAP men were taking credit for her work.
“These men continue to say that as the health exco member, I need to learn from them.
“Tell me, exactly what have they done to bring the number of cases down since their appointments?“
In a Facebook post, Sim listed what he’d been able to help execute, such as the increase in the number of intensive care unit (ICU) beds in Penang from 69 in July to 101 now. Another 10 are on the way for use at Hospital Kepala Batas.
The Bukit Mertajam MP said he had also been able to address the issue of underused quarantine centres. Occupancy had been less than 40% at one point despite the state registering some of the highest daily number of cases in the country.
He said more patients had been moved to these centres, raising occupancy to 60%.
Sim said he had suggested using existing vaccination centres to inoculate teens, rather than doing so at schools. This had resulted in 10,000 doses being given to adolescents daily, the fourth fastest rate among states in the country.
He also had a hand in improving participation of assemblymen in combating the virus within their constituencies, he said.
“I am willing to be criticised, because this isn’t a personal matter but one of life and death for the people. But don’t bother with sarcasm and talking about ‘miracles’.”
Stay current - Follow FMT on WhatsApp, Google news and Telegram