For 25-year-old fresh graduate Ariani, getting the first shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine today meant one step towards going back to a normal working life.

Leaving university just as the first movement control order (MCO) hit last year, she spent almost half a year job-hunting before landing her current research assistant position.

“It was so hard to find a job. I was unemployed for five months before I found a permanent job. I was quite affected.

“(Since then) I have had experience working from home and working on-station. For me, I want to go back to normalcy and working on-station.

“I rather go to the office than work from home because it is different,” she told Malaysiakini when met after getting her first jab at the World Trade Centre vaccine dispensing centre (PPV) in Kuala Lumpur today.

For Kong Wooi Hon, before the ...