'Circuit breaker' will take time to yield results, says PM Lee, citing NZ experience

Singapore

SINGAPORE'S "circuit breaker" measures can be effective in slowing down Covid-19 infections over time if taken seriously, as they did in other countries which adopted similarly stringent moves after a surge in new cases, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday.

Singapore reported another death linked to Covid-19 and 198 new cases on Friday, taking the total number of cases to 2,108.

Mr Lee, in a Facebook video on Friday, cited his New Zealand counterpart, Jacinda Ardern, who had told him that New Zealand also implemented a stringent lockdown and only saw new cases coming down on Day 11 of the lockdown.

Countries like China and South Korea have also taken similarly tough measures and managed to slow down a surge in infections after some time, Mr Lee said.

He therefore urged the public to be patient, yet resolute in terms of taking the "circuit breaker" measures seriously.

"I know the measures are very inconvenient. They also come at high cost to our economy. But the more strictly we observe the restrictions, the faster they will work, and the sooner we can ease up on them," the prime minister said.

"If some of us fail to comply strictly with the measures, the 'circuit breaker' will fail, then all our inconvenience, pain and sacrifice will have been in vain. Covid-19 is very contagious. It only takes a few people to let down their guard, and the virus will slip through."

This is especially important given the recent spike in local Covid-19 cases, where many are unlinked cases that the government is unable to trace. It means that the persons who infected them are probably still out there, and infecting more people, Mr Lee said.

The prime minister also appealed to older Singaporeans like himself to stay at home, as they are more vulnerable: "Our chances of dying are much higher, and if we get infected and spread the virus to our friends around our age, or bring the virus back home to our families, we put them in grave danger."

If possible, Singaporeans should also try not to visit between households, close kin or even elderly parents who live alone, although there is some flexibility in the law to accommodate special situations, Mr Lee stressed. It is to protect the seniors, as well as other people in Singapore.

Mr Lee said the government is paying "close attention" to the welfare of the foreign workers, who have played an important part in building the country's infrastructure. The government has worked with their employers to make sure they will be paid their salaries, and can remit money home.

Of the new cases reported on Friday, nearly a third are linked to clusters at foreign worker dormitories. Three new clusters - a dormitory at 31 Sungei Kadut Avenue, the ICA Building and a renovation site at the National University Hospital - were also found.

Globally, the latest figures compiled by John Hopkins University on the pandemic show about 97,000 deaths out of about 1.6 million infections, led by the US (about 466,000 cases), Spain (about 157,000) and Italy (about 144,000). China's infection numbers appear to have stabilised at about 83,000.