I sit here wondering what has been done behind the closed doors of the Legislative Council to secure the required number of vaccine doses to make Hong Kong a safe and vibrant place again. Every day I read about countries like Israel charging ahead with their vaccination programmes. Apparently they have already given vaccination doses to up to 40 per cent of their entire population. That is almost 4 million people. It was with some dismay that I watched Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s press conference on Tuesday, January 26, where she stated there had been some issues, or “a little bit of a hiccup”, in securing the vaccines for Hong Kong and we could now expect the vaccination programme to begin towards the end of February. What exactly are these issues? The Hong Kong government needs to explain what these are. Is it the case they are not willing to pay the required price to secure a certain dosage of the available vaccines in order to make the city a safer place? Is it the case they are willing to sacrifice many businesses, and the livelihoods of tens of thousands of people in the hospitality sector, for example, in exchange for placing Hong Kong lower down the waiting list for receiving delivery of the necessary doses? Hong Kong still has significant financial reserves and more should be done to expedite the vaccination programme. Graeme Duncan, Jordan Hiccups a symptom of deeper malaise in city Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s comment that Hong Kong is experiencing “ hiccups ” in the procurement of the three vaccines already purchased by the city serves as a sweeping condemnation of her inability to have the correct vaccines procured and at the correct time! The world’s biggest vaccination campaign has begun, with more than 82.5 million doses in 59 countries having been administered, an average of 3.95 million doses a day. Why then has Hong Kong, a rich, compact first world city, not administered a single shot nor drawn up a timeline for vaccination? Singapore gives 60,000 vaccine shots, tightens curbs for Lunar New Year This is a damning reflection upon a chief executive and her ministerial appointments. Hong Kong could have been the first city in the world to be fully vaccinated; we could have, for once, been Asia’s World City! Instead, we are lagging behind third world economies. Mark Peaker, The Peak