Around 18,000 COVID vaccine jabs given to kids aged 5 to 11

Feb 1 2022

5,069 children aged 5 to 11 have received the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to statistics tabled in parliament.

This was revealed by Health Minister Chris Fearne who said that as of 26th January, 17,953 doses of the jab had been administered to children aged between 5 to 11.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) authorised the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for kids back in November, with the rollout to this age group beginning on the 14th of December 2021 in Malta.

The health minister also revealed that as of the 26th of January, 164,548 doses of the vaccine had been administered to people aged between 16 and 29. Of these, 81,029 were second doses.

Moreover, 46,082 persons in this cohort had received the booster dose. As of today, 1,210,946 doses were administered, of which 329,806 being booster shots. Fearne was replying to a parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Ivan Bartolo.

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Man Utd striker Mason Greenwood removed from FIFA 22, Nike breaks ties

Feb 1 2022

Following allegations of domestic abuse on his girlfriend, Manchester United Mason Greenwood took a double hit as he was removed from FIFA 22 and had Nike ties broken. Following the latest database update which was released on all platforms including PlayStation, XBOX and PC, Greenwood no longer features on the popular football simulation.

The forward’s FIFA 22 Ultimate Team item remains active still, and can still be traded on the FUT 22 transfer market. At the time of removal, Greenwood’s virtual player had an overall rating of 79 out of 99. In related news, Nike also suspended its relationship with the 20-year-old, releasing a statement that they are deeply concerned by the disturbing allegations and plan on monitoring the situation closely.

On Sunday, the Premier League club said Greenwood will not return to training or play matches until further notice. This comes after a series of photos and audio recordings allegedly posted online by Harriet Robson, Greenwood’s girlfriend. The revelations showed Robson bruised and bleeding, wounds sustained through the footballer. He himself has not yet responded to the allegations. He was arrested Sunday 30th and remains in custody.

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Volt proposes Hazard Pay for healthcare workers due to pandemic

Feb 1 2022

Political party Volt has proposed introducing ‘Hazard Pay’ for all healthcare workers as the country progresses through the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic. ‘Volt believes that healthcare workers who have helped sustain the healthcare system through all the waves experienced thus far have not been shown enough appreciation’ the party stated.

Co-President of Volt Alexia DeBono said that it is well-known that there is a shortage of healthcare workers on the island. In spite of that, she said, they did a remarkable job since before there was the vaccine and throughout each variant which reaches our shores. Volt is now proposing a hazard pay rise for healthcare workers in 3 ways. For those who have been working for 1-12 months during the pandemic, a supplement of 5% on their salary is given.

For those who have been working more than 12 months, that supplement goes up to 10% until the end of the pandemic, the party said. Kassandra Mallia, Candidate and Vice-President of Volt Malta said that ‘we must also acknowledge not just their current work, but also past work.’

‘Therefore, we are also proposing that healthcare workers who have already been working during the pandemic, will receive a grant based on the same calculation starting from March 2020. So if they have worked for 2 years during the pandemic, the healthcare workers would receive a grant equivalent to 5% of their income of the first 12 months, and then 10% of their income of the following month.’

Arnas Lasys, Co-President of Volt Malta, added that this would also be given to students who in the final year of their medical degree were called up to with the pandemic.

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Photo Source: Volt Communications

Paulina Dembska’s body has been released for burial

Feb 1 2022

The late Paulina Dembska’s body has been released for burial, with her funeral expected to take place in Poland in the coming days.

TVMNews was informed that in recent days, Paulina’s relatives were in Malta to identify her body at Mater Dei Hospital.

With her body expected to be sent to Poland in the coming hours, Dembska was murdered on the morning of January 2nd 2022 at the Independence Garden, Sliema.

Murder suspect Abner Aquilina assaulted, raped and killed Dembska, with an autopsy confirming that she had died of suffocation after succumbing to physical violence and injuries.

In mere hours, over €20,000 were raised in an initiative taken on by some of Dembska’s friends to help the family with funeral costs and legal expenses. The court case of Aquilina is currently ongoing after he was admitted to Mount Carmel.

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