HERB Dhaliwal, 68, the first South Asian to become a federal cabinet minister, recently got his COVID-19 vaccination shot and sent his photos to The VOICE to encourage South Asians not to hesitate in getting their jabs.

Dhaliwal was first elected as a Liberal MP from Vancouver South in 1993. Then-prime minister Jean Chretien appointed him Minister of Revenue in 1997, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans in 1999, and Minister of Natural Resources and Minister with political responsibility for British Columbia in 2002.