My previous post was on Singapore's more stringent COVID-19 measures. The government called it a circuit breaker and are avoiding using the term "lock down" as much as possible. Since this is an unprecedented event in Singapore, I thought I should document more about the event on this platform so that I can still refresh my memory on this event in years to come.
Day 4 of circuit breaker
It is day 4 of the circuit breaker today and people are slowly adjusting to the new measures. Since dining in at food outlets are not allowed, "economic mixed rice" or 菜饭 (cai png) becomes the hot favorite for take-aways. For those who do not know, in Singapore, "economic mixed rice" is probably the cheapest hawker food you can find which provide the most variety of food on the table.
For just S$9, you get 4 dishes from the "economic mixed rice" stall. Together with rice, these are more than sufficient to fill the stomach for 4.
The other observations I made are that more people are wearing masks now. This is a good thing as I will explain later. I also see more joggers as I go for my run yesterday. Since there are no other things to do outdoors, I think more Singaporeans are heading out to jog. It is the simplest exercise that you can do alone. Perhaps I will take some pictures from my nearby park for my next circuit breaker update 😃.
Record high COVID-19 cases yesterday
Yesterday, Singapore recorded the largest surge so far in terms of the number of COVID-19 cases.
Source
It is unsurprising to see frustrated Singaporeans write about the current situation. I stumbled across this post and one thing I agree with this article is on the use of face masks.
Singapore government should never had discouraged the use of face masks. I understand the government needed to protect supply of face masks to healthcare workers but discouraging the use of it gave a false sense of security. Before the government issued reusable masks, I observed that there were no more than 10% of Singaporeans wearing masks in public.
In my opinion, masks serve 2 key purposes. If everyone wears a mask, regardless what kind of mask, it serves as 2 additional layers of protection against spread through droplets. In addition, wearing a mask also serves as a constant reminder that we are in a pandemic and need to practice better personal hygiene. Stop touching your face, wash your hands often and avoid touching surfaces as much as possible.
So with the exploding case counts, is it too late for Singapore? I think it is never too late. As long as we put in the right measures and everyone practices good personal hygiene, things will get better eventually. Let's see how it goes. It is day 4 and there are 24 more days to go 😅.
Lockdown too early, people scold gahment kiasu, kiasi. Lockdown when erupted people say see lah, ask you early lockdown you don't want. Now then you lock down. No pleasing the armchair critics lah. Talk is cheap, talk is easy. :-)
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. But we don't have the benefit of hindsight. So we just do what we can, what we think is the right thing to do.
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Haha.. Indeed. There is no perfect policy and no way to please everyone. The effects of these measures will only be seen 1-2 weeks later. We all just need to be patient.
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Singaporeans should just obey rules and not become scapegoats for being disobedient. It can be very disadvantageous if people do not keep to social distancing at this point in time.
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Yup, that is true!
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@tipu curate
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Upvoted 👌 (Mana: 6/9 - need recharge?)
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Thanks!
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Hi @culgin!
It is interesting that the government has decided to change the word "lockdown", perhaps creating a less shocking socio-psychological effect. Maybe it would have been less traumatic the effect here, who knows. However, I feel the same way as you do about the need for using a facial mask.
That food looks extremely delicioooouuuus!
Thanks for sharing :D
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Hey thanks! Masks are now made compulsory in Singapore and I just wrote about it in my latest post
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It is more than a week of lock down in my state and we just need to adjust to the trend, it is good you have food to purchase at singapore it is difficult to get food here and when you do, it is really expensive.
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Yea, I count ourselves fortunate that we do not need to worry about basic necessities.
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I never knew there was a country that was not yet on lockdown until I found your post, I thought every country has been on at least a lock down period of one week by now, stay safe friend.
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Yea, Singapore is one of the earliest countries to impose travel restrictions but will probably be the last to do a lockdown. We might even not do a full lockdown at all. Let's see how things goes.
Stay safe and healthy!
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I like this post @culgin, it's part of your daily experience, you contribute with information about the covid19 in your country and also some particular things. I like that picture where you show people standing in line to buy.
As for the masks, yes, the priority should be in the health systems, because they are the most exposed to everything. There is something particular about this, the WHO says that they should only be worn by people who have symptoms of respiratory diseases, however, China recommends that everyone should wear them.
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Thanks! I think it is pretty logical that wearing masks will help. However, I can understand the difficulties of the various governments. Securing face masks for healthcare workers is of the top priority.
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Wow! This is so astonishing. Here in my country, the lock down doesn't affect the trading of local food and buying of food stuffs at the market. I sometimes buy food from the local restaurant in my street and it is really helping everyone here since the government failed to provide food and money for it's citizens. I really can't say if the lock down affected big restaurants like yours because I haven't really been going out much due to the lock down.
I actually don't know how the government run their activities with the citizens in Singapore but I think it is advisable for the government to provide preventive measures for it's citizens by all means.
Some Singapore citizens might not actually love the use of face masks maybe because it makes some of them uncomfortable but anyone who is in need of face masks may go ahead and buy it or is there also restrictions in buying face masks if the government can't provide?
I just hope the issue of covid-19 ends as soon as possible and I hope everything gets better.
Thanks for sharing this great post with love from @hardaeborla in courtesy of @crypto.piotr. Always remember to stay safe ❤️💕❤️💕❤️💕
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Thanks! Our restaurants or food places are not shutdown, you just cannot dine-in and have to pack your food home to eat.
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It's really good to hear they aren't shutdown.
Thanks for your lovely reply ❤️💕
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It is always the case that people would find it difficult to adjust to the change. However, over time, they'll see the need for a prompt adherence to lockdown. It is better to contain the pandemic when it's spread and contact is low.
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Yup, that is very true.
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The mask is not effective like you said buy if you stay away from people of 2 meters you might be okay!
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The government here do impose a 1 meter rule. But the best is still to stay at home :)
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I was so amazed how you managed the COVID19 situation with your Taiwanese and Hong-kongese neighbours. Unfortunately it feels like this 2nd wave caught you by surprise.
Let's hope these new measures will slow down the contagion.
Stay home and Stay Safe !
Best,
@vlemon
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Yes, Singapore being a small and metropolitan city, the second wave did hit us pretty hard.
Stay safe and healthy as well!
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Am i the only one seeing this "stay home and stay safe" motto everywhere? Oh!! It is not on this post but @vlemon has it.
I believe the best thing that can be done is a complete lockdown to be able to access those with the virus and quarantine them separately and start treating them.
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Well, the Singaporean government generally do not opt for extreme measures. They like to balance things and go for something in between. Hence, we are not in a full lockdown yet, but I will not rule that out
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