Given that the national COVID-19 vaccination programme has kicked off, all KTV centres as well as the Geylang nightlife can now be reopened, said Temasek CEO Ho Ching in a Facebook post on Tuesday (27 July).

Mdm Ho said that these places can be reopened provided that vaccination and testing are placed as key measures, in addition to other precautions like air sterilising and cleaning.

“Actually, with vaccination now available, we can re-open not just KTV but also the Geylang night life, with vaccination and testing as key measures, alongside other safety measures like air sterilising and cleaning,” she wrote.

As of 26 July, a total of 7,256,331 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered under the national vaccination programme.

“The total number of doses administered was 7,256,331, covering 4,254,789 individuals. 3,122,180 individuals have completed the full vaccination regimen, consisting of 120,638 recovered persons who received at least one dose and 3,001,542 who received their second dose,” said the Ministry of Health (MOH).

In her post, Mdm Ho, who is also the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, also noted that the Government’s decision to move back to Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) was not due to the KTV cluster, but because of the Jurong Fishery Port (JFP) cluster.

“KTV cluster was not the reason for re-imposing P2(HA) circuit breaker restrictions. It was the JFP cluster with the likelihood of shooting into the community via hawker centres and markets,” she wrote.

Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) not due to KTV cluster

While delivering a Ministerial Statement in Parliament on Monday (26 July), Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam clarified that the reason behind Singapore’s Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) tightened restrictions was because of the JFP cluster, given that the authorities have managed to bring the KTV cluster under control fairly quickly.

“If we were facing only the KTV cluster, there would have been no need for any tightened measures. The tightening of measures is due to the cluster at the Jurong Fishery Port. It has spread from the ports to the market, hawkers, into the wider community,” said Mr Shanmugam.

“The KTV cluster has been brought under control fairly quickly – tracing, testing and ring-fencing the cases.”

Night venues closed since 26 March 2020

The Singapore authorities mandated back in March last year for all bars and entertainment venues like night clubs, discos, cinemas, theatres, and karaoke outlets to close, stating that such venues poses a high risk of transmission due to sustained close contact over a period of time.

This was announced together with a whole range of additional measures by the Multi-Ministry Taskforce (MTF) on 24 March 2020. Other stricter measures announced were limiting gatherings outside of work and school to 10 persons or fewer, and ensuring that physical distancing of at least one metre can be achieved in settings where interactions are non-transient.

While it was said to be a temporarily closure, night clubs and karaoke outlets have remain closed for over 16 months, other than those which have pivoted under the F&B conversion scheme.

The mandatory closure also included the licensed brothels that operate in Geylang district.

Subscribe
Notify of
73 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

Public Forum – 24 May, Saturday

Implications of inflation on your investments and the labour market

下车为搭客撑伞挡雨 暖心车长获网民赞扬

微微一笑很倾城,小小举动暖人心,巴士车长在雨天为每一站准备上车的搭客撑伞,令网民见了倍感暖心和感动,在社交媒体上分享这温馨经历。 网友 Dini Hashim周二(9月15日)早上在脸书帖文,分享她于周一(14日)和友人乘坐SMRT963号双层巴士,坐在巴士上层左边最前方的座位,而当时正下着大雨,让她看见了温馨一幕。 她发现当巴士抵达巴士站时,就看到有一支雨伞被高高撑起,几乎能碰到上层的窗子了,因此她思索着,应该是很高的人在撑伞吧。 然而,当类似事件发生在每一个巴士站时,才意识到是车长从自己的座位起身,拿起自己的雨伞,为上车的搭客撑伞,而且在每一个巴士站都是这样做。“我乘搭巴士这么多年,从来没有遇见这么周到的服务。我(或大多数人)通常都会从巴士站跑出来,直接跳上巴士,虽然只是数秒钟的行动,但是也会被雨淋湿。” 她指出,尤其是当她看到车长离开巴士,到较远的巴士站为每一名搭客撑伞时,“那真是太温馨了”。 网友指出,当巴士抵达兀兰转站时,曾和车长聊了一下,得知车长此举已经行之有年。“车长笑说,这是双赢,搭客不会被淋湿,巴士上也不会湿溻溻。” “好车长,你是人性存在的证明。”

香港教育局续延长停课 不早于3月16日开课

基于疫情蔓延,香港教育局宣布全港学校继续延长停课,不早于3月16日开课。 日前由于香港出现新型冠状病毒确诊病例后,中小学、幼儿园、特殊学校将延长农历新年假期至2月17日。然而疫情并未出现延缓现象,因此香港教育局再度宣布延长停课。 根据《香港电台网站》,香港教育局局长杨润雄表示,目前新型冠状病毒未有减退的迹象,近日香港内更出现集体感染的,为预防校内传播,决定继续延长停课,待具备所有条件后才会复课,同时也会尽早通知学校,让学校有所准备。 杨润雄也表示,若正身处中国或其他国家学生,应遵守当地的应对措施,而他也呼吁当地港生尽量留在家中,避免去高人群地区。 我国教育部令从中返新师生   需申请缺席假 至于我国教育部采取的措施,是指示从中国返回新加坡的师生,需申请14天缺席假。 教育部于今年1月时向媒体透露,综合教育部幼儿园、中小学、初级学院、理工学院及工艺教育学院所提供的申请,目前共有115名教职员及852名学生因从中国返回新加坡,必须申请14天的缺席假。 教育部提及,缺席假并非是隔离令(Quarantine Order ),但尽管申请缺席假无需一直待在家中,但也减少外出,避免与其他人接触,待确定过了潜伏期再出门。同时申请缺席假的人必须随时测量体温并保持联络。 其中一名教职员与一名学生从湖北返新,而其他人则前往中国其他地区。…

Two new standardisation initiatives launched to support active ageing for seniors in Singapore

Two new standardisation initiatives supported by SPRING Singapore and the Singapore Standards…