Singapore is already seeing some positive results from its tight circuit breaker measures but the republic cannot ease off now, according to its National Development Minister Lawrence Wong.
“We have to make this strong push to decisively break the transmission chain,” said Wong, who is also the Co-chair of the Multi-Ministry Taskforce on COVID-19, at a press conference here today.
The one-month circuit breaker to stem the spread of COVID-19 on the island-city, which kicked in on April 7, entered its third week this week.
Meanwhile, Minister of Health, who also Co-chaired the task force, Gan Kim Yong said the number of new cases in the community had decreased from an average of 39 cases per day in the week before to an average of 29 per day the past week.
“What is particularly worrying is that the number of unlinked cases in the community have not fallen, averaging about 20 cases a day,” he revealed.
Earlier, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the circuit breaker scheduled to end on May 4, would be extended for four more weeks until June 1, 2020.
On April 20, Singapore reported the largest single daily spike of new cases at 1,426 (cases), of which 37 per cent were pending contact tracing.
As at 12 noon today, Singapore had confirmed an additional 1,111 cases of COVID-19 infection in the republic, bringing the tally to 9,152 incidents.
Lee said the number of unlinked cases had not gone down and “this suggests there is a larger, hidden reservoir of cases in the community, that is the source of these unlinked cases, which we have not detected.”
The extended circuit breaker was also aimed at ensuring that if any leakage occurred from the dorm clusters to the wider community, it could detect and contain it early, and prevent new clusters from forming and bursting out of control.
-- BERNAMA
Bernama
Tue Apr 21 2020
The one-month circuit breaker to stem the spread of COVID-19 on the island-city, which kicked in on April 7, entered its third week this week.
ANALYSIS - What could happen if Trump rejects the US election results
If Trump seems to be losing, the delay could let him claim fraud and undermine confidence in election officials.
Motorcycling - Marquez wins Australian MotoGP after intense battle with Martin
The 31-year-old, third in the championship standings, has now won the Australian MotoGP four times in the premier class.
Prabowo takes up Indonesian presidency, vows to tackle corruption, other issues
Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto on Sunday took over as president of the world's third-largest democracy, vowing to combat internal issues
Nepal's Sherpas deserve more, says teenager who scaled world's 14 tallest peaks
Sherpas are known for climbing skills that make them the backbone of mountain expeditions.
Inside the underground lab in China tasked with solving a physics mystery
China will soon collect neutrino data, aiming to unravel one of particle physics' biggest mysteries.
Millions in Cuba still without power as major outage persists
Millions of Cubans remain without electricity because of a prolonged outage at the main power plants on the island, Anadolu Agency reported.
Surge in Gaza violence increases famine risk, monitor says
About 1.84 million people across the besieged Palestinian enclave are living through high levels of acute food insecurity.
Israel pounds Beirut and Gaza after rockets hit Israel's north
A drone was launched at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's holiday home.
Elon Musk promises to award $1 mil each day to a signer of his petition
He awarded a $1 million check to an attendee of his event in Pennsylvania aimed at rallying supporters behind Donald Trump.
Former special forces commander Prabowo to take up Indonesian presidency
Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto will take over as president of the world's third-largest democracy after sweeping the country's election with policies like free meals for school children
Father of Malaysian Islamic banking, Abdul Halim Ismail passes away
His dedication and pioneering spirit played an important role in shaping the journey of Bank Islam as well as leaving a lasting impact on the development of Malaysia's Islamic finance industry.
Zayn Malik postpones US tour dates after One Direction bandmate Liam Payne's death
Payne, 31, died on Wednesday after falling from a third-floor hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires, shocking fans of the boy band.
Why voters in a handful of swing states will decide the US presidential election
The contest will almost certainly be decided by just tens of thousands of voters a tiny fraction of the populace in a handful of states.
INSIGHT - Sudan's war risks 'lost generation' of children
A devastating crisis is unfolding in Sudan, where the most vulnerable members of society children are bearing the brunt of the violence.
Who is Prabowo Subianto, incoming president of Indonesia?
A wealthy ex-general with ties to Indonesia's popular outgoing president and its dictatorial past, looks set to be its next leader.
Trump says he would impose tariffs on China if China went into Taiwan
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would impose additional tariffs on China if China were to "go into Taiwan,"
Iran's supreme leader says Hamas leader's death will not halt 'Axis of Resistance'
The "Axis of Resistance", built up with years of Iranian support, includes Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah group, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shi'ite groups in Iraq and Syria.
Putin says Russia willing to seek compromises between Iran and Israel
Russia is ready to help seek compromises between arch-foes Israel and Iran, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, saying these would be difficult but possible.
What proposals will Russia push at the BRICS summit?
The proposal is also to establish a BRICS reinsurance company to allow uninterrupted shipment of goods and key commodities between members.
Indonesia's free meals plan in the spotlight as Prabowo readies for office
Prabowo calls the programme one of the main drivers of economic growth, eventually set to add an estimated 2.5 million jobs.