Contrasting responses to haze and hepatitis C outbreak

IT was pathetic watching Channel NewsAsia TV news showing workers at a large store scrambling to clear stacks of paper products like tissue paper, kitchen and toilet rolls and the like off shelves - as if public health would be severely affected if this was not done immediately.

The reason appears to be some official announcement of action against manufacturers of the widely used household products which have had no reported ill effects on users.

Contrast this with the length of time it took for Singaporeans to be informed that, for four months, Singapore General Hospital (SGH) had an outbreak of hepatitis C, leading to the deaths of unfortunate victims.