Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong made a Facebook post on Saturday (23 Jan) reminding all that the “war against COVID-19” is far from over. He said that his government has decided to “tighten up” to keep everyone safe, in view of the coming Chinese New Year.
“The recent community cases remind us that the war against COVID-19 is far from over. With Chinese New Year coming up, we have decided to tighten up to keep everyone safe,” he said.
Starting Tuesday (26 Jan), each household can only receive eight visitors per day. Also, each person can only visit two households a day. The visits are restricted to visiting family members only.
“If tossing yusheng, please keep your masks on and don’t shout out the auspicious phrases – say them in your hearts instead,” he added.
“These stricter measures will surely disappoint all of us looking forward to celebrating CNY. But we must psychologically prepare ourselves to celebrate CNY differently this year. Just look at the countries near and far experiencing repeated surges in cases, and you will see why we need to stay vigilant.”
He also said that through immense effort and sacrifice, Singapore has got itself to a “stable situation”.
“Our vaccination programme is underway, with seniors starting to get their shots next week,” he shared. “Let us continue to protect ourselves and our loved ones by adhering to all the measures.”
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry (MOH) reported a total of 48 imported COVID-19 cases yesterday.
| Country of origin | Number of imported |
| India | 20 |
| Indonesia | 7 |
| Bangladesh | 5 |
| UAE | 4 |
| Malaysia | 3 |
| France | 2 |
| Philippines | 2 |
| Nigeria | 1 |
| Myanmar | 1 |
| Egypt | 1 |
| US | 1 |
| Cambodia | 1 |
MOH revealed that the number of new cases in the community has increased from 6 in the week before to 17 in the past week.