New studies carried out by researchers have found that there has been no widespread community transmission of Covid-19 here up until the end of March.

Professor Leo Yee Sin, who chairs the Covid-19 research workgroup that commissioned the studies, said this suggests that contact tracing efforts have been successful in identifying most of the cases of infection in Singapore, and few have fallen through the cracks.

The preliminary findings of the study were released on Wednesday (April 29) during a press conference held to give more information on the three studies.

The research workgroup was set up in January to study and come to a greater understanding of Covid-19 transmission in Singapore.

Its members are health experts from across the public healthcare institutions, the Ministry of Health, the DSO National Laboratories and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star).

Dr Mark Chen, head of research at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID), stressed that these initial results were obtained in the tail-end of March and early April, before the rapid rise in cases from the foreign worker dormitory clusters.

new normal :cheap travel is over.

Imagine travelling to your holiday destination on a plane that is only half filled with passengers, served by cabin crew wearing masks.

That could be the “new normal” for airlines which are likely to continue with safe distancing measures even after the COVID-19 outbreak dies down, said aviation analysts.

Already, budget carrier Jetstar Asia, which resumed partial operations last Tuesday (Apr 21), said no more than 112 seats will be available on each passenger flight. That’s about 60 per cent of capacity, as part of efforts to ensure safe distancing on board.

Passengers and crew members will be required to wear masks.

Onboard services such as meals will also be cut back, with only water served on flights. 

Several other airlines, such as Air New Zealand, KLM and United Airlines, are also taking steps to ensure safe distancing, for example, by blocking off certain seats from being purchased.

“It's all very early days as airlines try to figure out the new norm,” said independent aviation analyst Brendan Sobie, noting that blocking seats is a common measure at the moment.

However, seat blocking has had little direct impact on airline revenue right now, as most flights are operating at “well below 50 per cent” of passenger capacity anyway, Mr Sobie pointed out. Cargo is currently the main revenue source for airlines, he added.

END OF CHEAP TRAVEL?

According to International Air Transport Association (IATA) director-general Alexandre de Juniac, the enforcement of safe distancing on aircraft would require at least one-third of plane seats to remain empty.

Airlines would have to raise ticket prices by at least 50 per cent in order to turn a minimum profit, he suggested at a briefing on Apr 21.

“It means two things - either you fly at the same price, selling the ticket at the same average price as before and then you lose an enormous amount of money, so it’s impossible to fly for any airline. Or you increase the ticket price for a similar product by at least 50 per cent and then you are able to fly with a minimum profit,” he said.

“And so it means that if social distancing is imposed, cheap travel is over.”

“Will 180 people feel comfortable being together for two to three hours in an aircraft?” he said.

“Until and unless a vaccine is found - and that's at least a year away - low-cost airlines will struggle to fill the planes and therefore, won't make money flying passengers that can't allow carriers to break even,” he added. 

“If they don't make money, they can't sustain the business.”

NUS student with 'good grades' jailed 2 weeks for molest after Chief Justice overturns probation

For each count of outrage of modesty, Siow could have been jailed for up to two years, fined, caned or any combination of the three.

every one has their own breaking point. our fellow colleague had one and he quit on the same day. it was too much for him and he rang the bell, calling it a day

The Multiple Faces of The Homeless in Singapore

​Derelict – a person without a home, job, or property.

Destitute – extremely poor, without the means to provide for oneself.

These two words come to mind when one thinks about the homeless sleeping on the streets. A few weeks ago, TODAY ran a news report about the homeless in Singapore and the revelations defied conventional perceptions about them. For example, a large fraction of the 180 interviewed were gainfully employed. More than a quarter owned flats. That is far from the definition of a derelict or a destitute.
Before one breaks out the champagne, and conclude that the homeless situation is not as big a problem as it seems; one needs to understand that although some made conscious choices to be homeless, the circumstances that led them to such choices are often unhappy ones.

The most common reason for people to have no roof over their heads is income level. A cleaner with a monthly salary of $1,200 can hardly make ends meet even without having to pay for room rental, which on average can be $600 to $700 a month. In this regard, the government has done its part by coming up with the Public Rental Scheme where small flats can be rented from as low as $26 a month, depending on household income. The condition of having to apply with another family member or single Singaporean citizen made many homeless who are used to a reclusive lifestyle, or already abandoned by friends and family; difficult to partake in the scheme.

Alternative solutions might include halfway houses or three-quarter houses, but these might only appeal to the religiously inclined.

TCM retailers shut?

During the circuit breaker to slow the spread of Covid-19, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinics may stay open only for the delivery of essential services.

Yet it seems rather inequitable that while pharmacies that sell Western medicine are allowed to continue operating during the circuit breaker, TCM shops are barred from doing so.

TCM herbal pills, plasters, ointments and lotions, which are generally not available in pharmacies, are effective remedies for a range of ailments, especially minor injuries due to sprains, strains and sports.

Many of these TCM products are made locally and are certified under the GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) scheme, which ensures that products are consistently produced and controlled in line with quality standards. Furthermore, they are allowed for sale as Chinese proprietary medicines by Singapore’s authorities.

I don't know where they will send me to. I was told to go home.

Fearing that the conditions of his living quarters could increase his risk of coronavirus infection, Mr Mohan, 34, volunteered to help clean up the S11 Dormitory @ Punggol which was suddenly locked down on April 5.

At that time, S11 had 63 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and was designated as an isolation area by the Ministry of Health. As at yesterday, the dormitory located at Seletar North Link had 2,211 cases, making it Singapore's biggest cluster.

Back then, workers had described the dorm with 13,000 residents as crowded, unsanitary, infested with cockroaches and with overflowing toilets.

On the second and third day of S11's lockdown, Mr Mohan said he had helped to wash the toilets on the floor where he stays.

As there were not enough cleaners, he had also helped to clear the trash, and volunteered to collect food packs dropped off by caterers at the gate of the dorm for his roommates.

On the fourth day, he started to feel unwell.

"I felt feverish, but when I checked my temperature, it was 37.4 deg C. I also had a headache," said the Indian national, who wanted to give only his first name.

Mr Mohan, who was sharing a room with nine others, did not leave his room for the next two days, except to go to the toilet.

On April 11, his temperature rose to 38.6 deg C. He went to see a doctor stationed at the dorm that same day. "After that I was not allowed to return to my room," said Mr Mohan.

Together with about 10 other people, he was taken in a bus to Cherryloft Resorts at Jalan Loyang Besar, now a quarantine facility. There, he went through more tests.

In the following days, more symptoms started to appear.

My temperature was fluctuating every day and I started to cough. I also had chest pain and felt breathless," said Mr Mohan.

"A few days later, a doctor told me I tested positive (for Covid-19). I was very scared. I froze when I heard the news. The doctor said I would be taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital in an ambulance."

Mr Mohan, who has a two-year-old daughter, decided he would not tell his wife, who is seven months pregnant, about the test result.

"I didn't tell my wife I have Covid-19. When I told her I had fever, she was already crying non-stop. I didn't want her to worry, but I was very scared and I wonder when will I recover," said Mr Mohan.

Speaking to The Straits Times over the phone from his hospital bed yesterday, Mr Mohan who worked at a construction site in Woodlands, said he was so fearful of getting the virus that he stopped hanging out with his friends on his day offs even before the lockdown kicked in.

"I stopped going out in March. I worked on Saturdays and I spent Sundays sleeping in the dormitory. Only on March 8, I went to Little India to buy some vegetables. It was a short trip and I avoided having any physical contact with anyone."

Mr Mohan said he still does not know who had passed the virus to him.

"I stay in the blue zone in the dormitory. At first, only people in the red zone got it. Now, four of my roommates have tested positive," he said.

He added that he is now feeling better, and no longer has pains and aches. He had a swab test done yesterday, and was told that he can be discharged if the result is negative.

Patients can be discharged when they attain negative Covid-19 swab test results on two consecutive days.

"I don't know where they will send me to. I was told to go home. My home is S11," said Mr Mohan, who came to Singapore to work as a construction worker in 2011.

"I know there are a few thousand cases there already. But I am not afraid to go back there. I think my room is already empty. Everyone has already been sent to other places."

take good care my dear friend

crisis

Covid-19 is the single biggest crisis to affect Grab in the eight years of our existence.

With its revenues taking a severe hit from the Covid-19 outbreak, Grab is encouraging its employees to go on voluntary no-pay leave.

The ride-hailing firm also warned on Wednesday (April 29) that it might no longer be able to provide its drivers with extra financial support if Singapore’s circuit breaker restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus extend beyond June 1.

In a letter to drivers — a copy of which was sent to the media — Grab Singapore head of transport Andrew Chan said the company’s business has been badly hit by the pandemic.

“No one can be sure how long the situation will last, but we are preparing for a long and difficult path ahead,” he wrote.

“As our revenues continue to fall, senior Grab leaders have taken a pay cut of up to 20 per cent, and Grab staff have also been encouraged to take no-pay leave voluntarily.”

When contacted, Grab declined to reveal the number of people it employs in Singapore and how many among them have volunteered to take no-pay leave.

Read also: Grab refutes claims it ‘quietly’ stopped popular food delivery subscription plan

In March last year, it said it had 1,500 staff members here and planned to double its headcount to 3,000 by the end of this year. They will be housed in its new one-north headquarters that was due to be ready by the fourth quarter of this year.

it affects all walks of lives, whether you are rich or poor.

As a result, transport rides have continued to plunge by “double-digit percentages”, Mr Chan said. This has decimated the earnings of Grab’s drivers.

Grab declined to disclose the actual decline in ridership.

The troubles facing Singaporean oil trading firm Hin Leong deepened as the city-state’s police have started investigating the company.

The probe, which the Singapore Police Force confirmed by email, is the latest twist in the downfall of the company, which owes $3.85 billion to more than 20 banks and revealed in court filings that it hid about $800 million in losses. Hin Leong didn’t immediately respond to emails and a phone call seeking comment Tuesday morning in Singapore.

The implosion of Hin Leong Trading (Pte) Ltd., one of the biggest and most secretive players in the world of physical oil trading, is among the most spectacular impacts wrought by this year’s collapse in oil prices, which squeezed the firm’s revenues and triggered banks to call in debts

PUBLISHED

MAR 23, 2020, 5:00 Am

With Covid-19 now expected to be a danger for many more months, preparedness for various scenarios is key.

One possibility is that a cluster breaks out at a foreign worker dormitory.

The recent scramble to find accommodation for Malaysian workers stuck here when Malaysia closed its border suggests that we do not have enough spare capacity in dorms, without which, moving people around to ensure self-isolation may prove difficult.

Currently, foreign workers are housed 12 to 20 men per room in double-decker beds. They are transported to work on the back of lorries sitting shoulder to shoulder.

Neither of these conditions conforms with social distancing.

The risk of a new cluster among this group remains undeniable.

While it may be unrealistic to build additional dormitories in mere weeks or months, we call on the Government to announce in advance what plans they have to rehouse workers should clusters break out in dorms. This would give reassurance to the resident and non-resident community.

Going forward, any new dormitory should require more space per head and no more than four persons to a room. New rules can also be put in place immediately regarding the maximum number of persons per lorry.

There is another vulnerability, not often known to the public. Some employers of foreign workers have a company policy that imposes fines that are several times a worker's daily salary for failing to show up at work. We have also heard of employers who refuse to recognise medical leave of more than one or two days' duration.

Such measures discourage workers from seeing a doctor when ill; they also require sick workers to remain at work despite symptoms.

Foreign workers are housed 12 to 20 men per room in double-decker beds. They are transported to work on the back of lorries sitting shoulder to shoulder. Neither of these conditions conforms with social distancing.

We know the law requires employers to recognise medical leave, but, in our view, enforcement is insufficient and post-facto. On the question of docking wages and imposing fines, we believe the law is silent.

We call on the Ministry of Manpower to provide suitable accommodation for workers and to put a stop to such practices.

Covid-19 will not be the last infectious disease to be of concern.

Deborah D. Fordyce

President

Transient Workers Count Too


A week later, the first cluster at S11 was reported.

singapore is doing great job

What was a marginal contributor to Singapore's COVID-19 situation has quickly become the source of the majority of infections: Of the 4,427 cases here, more than 2,600 can be traced to migrant worker dormitories.

A record 728 new cases were reported on Thursday (Apr 16), with 654 of those infected living at worker dormitories. The number of dormitories with infections has grown to more than 25.

The Health Ministry's charts show that the cases among work permit holders and dormitory residents began climbing from Apr 1 even as the number infected in the community flattened and imported cases fell to zero - there have been no imported cases in Singapore for a week. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Before Apr 3, there were just 38 cases in worker dormitories. The number is now 2,689 - a 70-fold increase - and among work permit holders not living at dorms, 218 have been infected, according to the Ministry of Health's situation report on Thursday.

It took only 10 days for that figure to double to 2,000, and three days for it to top 3,000 as the number infected at the dormitories shot up. and another 3 days before passing 5000 mark.

Taiwan records no new COVID-19 cases, total kept at 393

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)^[I] is a Taiwanese nationalist and liberal political party in Taiwan.^[4][7][8] Controlling both the Taiwan Presidency and the unicameral Legislative Yuan, it is the majority ruling party and the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Tuesday (April 14) announced 334 new cases of Covid-19, bringing the total number of confirmed infections here to 3,252.

Trains and buses are to run at reduced frequency as ridership on public transport plunges in the current circuit breaker period.

From Wednesday (April 15), buses will run at longer intervals, while train service will be similarly adjusted from Friday.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said daily bus ridership has nosedived by more than 71 per cent and that of train by 75 per cent compared with ridership before the Covid-19 pandemic.

The adjustments ensured "sufficient space for commuters to maintain safe distancing from one another", the regulator added in a statement following queries from The Straits Times.

Kim Huat WFH Day 7

Kim Huat WFH Day 7

China reported 89 new coronavirus cases on April 13, down from 108 the previous day, the health authority said on Tuesday (April 14).

Of the total, 86 were imported, down from 98 a day earlier, the National Health Commission said.

China's state broadcaster had reported earlier that 79 of the day's imported cases were in the northeast province of Heilongjiang, which shares a border with Russia.

Grim daily reality

 From her apartment in Brooklyn, Ms Abigail Chan, a Singaporean who has lived in New York City for 21 years, has to place her conference calls - she is in the private equity business - on mute until sounds from the street fade.

For weeks now, the soundtrack of New York City has not been the roar of the traffic, nor the rattle and thunder of the tracks, nor the daily hubbub of the iconic economic engine and melting pot of almost 19 million people.

It has been the wail of sirens as ambulances race through empty streets.

"I get sirens all the time, day in, day out," she told The Straits Times.

Ms Chan, 43, would normally be travelling every month to all corners of the United States, but has been holed up in her apartment for over a month now as Covid-19 ravages the city.

Judge Yap said in her judgement that the woman’s claims were justified.

The judge noted that the main charge or “sting” which the woman needed to justify was that Dr Ong and Dr Chan had colluded to take advantage of vulnerable female patients, that they used their position as doctors to source for patients to have sex with, and that they exchanged information about these women.

Based on the evidence including what the defendant and Dr Chan said during cross-examination, Judge Yap concluded that the main charge was “substantially” true for the following reasons:

Dr Ong sought to have sex with the woman, who was Dr Chan’s patient, even if they were in a personal relationship. Dr Chan continued to supply the woman with Xanax, a drug to help her anxiety, during their relationship. During cross-examination, Dr Ong admitted that he had suggested Dr Chan, the defendant and another party have group sex. This, the judge said, showed that the woman was “de facto” Dr Chan’s patient and Dr Ong had colluded with Dr Chan to have sex with her.

A series of WhatsApp messages between the two doctors included messages where Dr Ong shared a patient’s contact details with Dr Chan and told him to “feel free to play your game”, and also made a reference to having anal sex with the patient. Judge Yap said that she found Dr Ong’s explanation that this was a bad joke to be “incredulous”. The messages, she said, “clearly show” that the two doctors were colluding to take advantage of a female patient.

The messages also showed that the two doctors were colluding with each other to look for women to have sex. Dr Ong introduced women he was having sex with to Dr Chan, in exchange for him to do the same. In one such instance, he had shared a naked photo of a woman to give Dr Chan a “preview”. Dr Chan admitted that Dr Ong did eventually introduce the woman to him and he went on to have sex with her.

The judge also said she rejected the argument by Dr Ong’s lawyer that there was no proof that the patients whom the doctors had sex with were “vulnerable”.

“The relationship between doctor and patient is necessarily one of trust,” she said. 

A surgeon in private practice has lost his defamation suit against a woman who told other doctors that he and another senior consultant were taking advantage of vulnerable female patients to have sex with them.

Dr Julian Ong Kian Peng, who runs a private practice at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, claimed that his reputation and well-being had suffered distress as a result.

However, his lawsuit, which started in July 2018, was dismissed with costs by District Judge Lynette Yap on April 3. The judge found that the defendant’s claims were justified.

The defendant, Ms Serene Tiong, is a business development manager at Thomson Medical Centre, who had an extra-marital affair with the other doctor in question, Dr Chan Herng Nieng, a senior consultant of psychiatry at Singapore General Hospital (SGH).

She was also his patient at the time.


In particular, she noted that Dr Chan is a psychiatrist whose practice involves patients with mental health issues where a “high level of trust between doctor and patient is required”. 

“To be clear, it is this court’s view that any doctor who seeks to have sex with his patient or pass a patient to another doctor to have sex with that patient, is interacting with a vulnerable person vis-a-vis that doctor,” said Judge Yap.

Taxi driver Tony Foo, 36, was coming to terms with the decline in his income over recent weeks when another problem arose. Renovations for the resale flat he was planning to move into were suddenly halted on Tuesday (April 7) when the circuit breaker measures came into full effect.

With the buyers of his current home refusing to delay their April 30 move-in date, Mr Foo would have to turn to hotel rooms when the time comes.

Mr Foo told TODAY that he reached out to HDB on Monday for help, and was initially told that nothing can be done unless he and the buyers come to a mutual agreement. In view of Mr Shanmugam's announcement, he was offered the extension till Thursday.

But he said the extension would have been unhelpful to him. “Most of the workers from my contractor’s company returned to Malaysia on Saturday and Sunday. Even if I (had) wanted to extend the renovations, there’s no one left to do the work," he said.

Because of Singapore’s past reserves, the nation did not have to spend “precious time negotiating with creditors or dealing with detractors”, but instead spent the hours deliberating hard over the challenges posed by Covid-19 to the nation, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said on Tuesday (April 7).

The Government does not view the reserves “as a piggy bank to be broken at will” in order to provide a convenient source of additional revenue, said Mr Heng, who is also Finance Minister, in his round-up speech in Parliament to the debate

Said Mr Heng in response: “If we had succumbed to the political pressure to spend more of our reserves in good years, we would not have had the war chest to deal with critical moments, such as now. And to do even more, if necessary, even in the next term of Government.”

“Indeed, this crisis has reaffirmed the value of our key institutions and the key tenets of our prudent fiscal policy – to spend prudently, invest wisely, and plan consistently for the long-term.”

bak kut teh

A man who allegedly left home to eat bak kut teh the night he returned from Myanmar, despite being given a 14-day stay-home notice, has been charged in court.

Alan Tham Xiang Sheng, 34, was served the notice on March 23 and was to stay home until April 6. Those entering Singapore are placed under stay-home notices to minimise the spread of Covid-19.

But Tham's charge sheet showed that between 3.40pm and 10pm on March 23, he allegedly visited:

A Koufu food centre at Changi Airport Terminal 3

Peninsula Plaza at 111 North Bridge Road

The Kampung Admiralty Foodfare hawker centre

An NTUC FairPrice supermarket at Block 676 Woodlands Drive 71

After the charges were read to him on Tuesday (April 7), Tham told the court that he would like to plead guilty.

He said he had “already explained everything”, but the authorities did not accept his account. 

In an interview with The Straits Times on March 25, Tham said he was under the impression that he was still allowed to leave home on the day of his return from Myanmar, and that his stay-home notice would begin only at midnight.

He faces one charge under Section 21A(1) of the Infectious Diseases Act. The provision states that a person who knows or has reason to suspect that he is a carrier or contact of an infectious disease shall not expose others to the risk of infection by his presence or conduct in any public place.