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SINGAPORE — It is too early to tell if safe-distancing measures are reducing the spread of Covid-19, as such measures took effect only last Friday (March 27) but there are “very good signs” to indicate that people are starting to abide by the new rules, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said.

These good signs include less crowded streets, fewer crowds, if any at all, and people abiding by the 1m separation rule, Mr Wong said at a virtual press conference on Tuesday by the multi-ministry task force for Covid-19. It was the first time the task force has held a virtual press conference, as a safe distancing measure. 

Mr Wong noted, however, that some people were still “missing the point” of safe distancing with the authorities receiving questions on whether, for example, they can hold gatherings at their homes if the gathering involved just 10 people.

Based on safe-distancing rules that the Government issued on March 25, all events and gatherings outside school or work cannot have more than 10 people.

“Very often, we still get people asking us, ‘Can I do this? Can I do that? Can I hold a party at my home maybe with just 10 people’... it’s just meeting the rule but that really misses the point,” he said.

“The point of all these measures is to reduce the activity level, it’s to minimise the contact with others so that each one of us can slow down the spread of the virus and we really need every Singaporean to do his and her part,” Mr Wong, who is co-chair of the task force, said.

He added that while contact tracers were “working their guts out to trace every case”, everyone should do their part and uphold and comply fully with safe-distancing measures.

“Effectively, stay at home as much as you can, minimise contact with others apart from your immediate family members,” he emphasised again.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said that he recently received a question from someone who asked whether he could invite nine friends to his home if his brother, who lived in the same house, stayed inside his room for the duration of the gathering.

“It’s not a question of whether you can or cannot. The key question is whether you need to or not. Even if you need to have interactions with close friends, do you need so many at the same time? If you can avoid it, avoid it during this period of time,” he said.

Mr Gan also noted that while it may be difficult to avoid close family members within the home, he encouraged individuals to protect older members of their families in particular.

“If we have elderly at home, observe extra caution when you are with them... raise your hygiene standards with them. If you’re ill, don’t go near your seniors. If they don’t live with you, don’t visit them,” he urged.

Speaking in Mandarin, Mr Wong said that “we need to encourage seniors to go out less frequently” because quite a number of them had been seen going to markets at the weekend or meeting friends for a meal.

“This is what seniors usually do, and we understand this, but we must continue to encourage them to adjust their habits and stay at home and meet people less frequently,” Mr Wong said, in a rough translation of his comments by a TODAY reporter.

He added that if seniors need to go to supermarkets using public transport, they should do so when there are fewer people using the buses and trains.

Associate Professor Kenneth Mak, director of medical services at the Ministry of Health (MOH), said that many of the current cases reflect exposure that may have taken place before the introduction of safe-distancing measures.

“It will take the next week or two weeks to see indicators of safe-distancing measures having effect and we will continue to look at that to see what the trend is like,” he said.

RETURNEES STAYING IN HOTELS 'NOT AN INDULGENCE'

In response to a question on how much was being spent on housing these returning Singaporean students in hotels, Mr Wong said that providing accommodation for these students from the United Kingdom and the United States is “not an indulgence”.

“This is not a question of how much we are spending… we will spend what is necessary to keep Singaporeans safe.” 

He explained that it is a “critical public health measure” to ensure that these individuals returning from overseas do not spread the virus to their immediate family and other people in the community.

Realising that there was an urgent public health need to provide dedicated and secure facilities for them to serve their self-isolation period, the Government turned to hotels.

“Where to find dedicated facilities in Singapore? The answer is hotel rooms which are vacant. That is why we quickly activated and worked with the hotels to make available these spaces,” Mr Wong said.

He added that the hotels that had come on board not only have to make the rooms and beds available but also have to put in place proper training for their employees and ensure that all arrangements are done in a way that is safe.

“I’m glad they could do it in quick time for returnees from the UK and US. We want to do it for everyone… We are looking at the numbers and activating more bed spaces and seeing how many we can accommodate.”