Easing Of SMM Measures Welcomed By Singaporeans
Source: AsiaOne
PM Lee’s speech about easing Covid restrictions on Mar 24 brings a sigh of relief to Singaporeans who have been battling the pandemic for 2 years now. From Mar 29, masks are no longer mandatory outdoors, group size for gatherings will double from 5 to 10 and up to 10 vaccinated individuals can dine out at F&B outlets.
Source: Facebook, Straits Times
Large scale social events can resume with the mandatory 1 metre apart between tables and 75% of workers can now return to offices. Previously, F&B establishments without vaccine-differentiated checks could only accept up to 2 pax. This will be increased to 5. Establishments with the checks in place will soon be able to accept up to 10 pax, up from 5 previously.
This is to ease the burden upon F&B operators, especially those at coffee shops and hawker centres who may face difficulties in trying to implement vaccination-differentiated safe management measures checks on customers.
Those who miss the nightlife can rejoice as bans on alcohol sale in F&B establishments will be lifted from Mar 29. Live performances, screening of live broadcasts programmes and outdoor busking will also resume from Mar 29. However, those who miss clubbing, bar hopping and karaoke will have to wait a little longer as government agencies are still looking into it.
PM Lee mentioned that the easing of restrictions was made possible after having reached a major milestone in the Covid journey.
In his speech, PM Lee thanked the healthcare workers for their sacrifices and dedication.
“Most of all, I want to thank our healthcare workers. You made tremendous sacrifices, at a heavy personal cost: pulling long shifts, day after day, week after week, since the start of the pandemic; returning to work on rest days to cover for colleagues who caught the virus; putting up with all the safety measures at the hospitals; risking exposure as you cared for infected patients. Because of you, we have maintained some semblance of normalcy in the past two years. Some countries have seen mass resignations of healthcare workers. But our healthcare team, doctors and nurses stayed at their posts and kept on performing their duties. So to our healthcare and frontline workers, from the bottom of my heart, and on behalf of a grateful nation, I want to say: Thank you!” – PM Lee.
Memes immediately started flooding the internet as Singaporeans got creative, especially with the mask updates and the infamous MBS no-mask lady.
Source: Facebook, AsiaOne
Source: CNA
It’s true, we do have selective hearing when it comes to such speeches. The focus is on the mask situation because mask fatigue is real.
Source: SGAG
Netizens’ general sentiments towards the easing of measures are mostly positive, most welcoming it.
Someone got poetic over the easing of measures.
There are also trolls and thirsty people who want more.
Selective hearing, again, but this time it is for those who miss hanging out and drinking at F&B establishments. They want to pace their drinking instead of getting drunk before 10.30 pm.
And then there are those who feel an impending sense of doom, perhaps due to the sudden surge of infections the last time measures were eased.
It is definitely a relief to hear about the measures being eased especially after fighting an unseen and unknown enemy for 2 years. Let’s move forward and fully live with the new normal.
Reporter’s Opinions: So many people want to get drunk it seems eh? Like y’all didn’t get drunk past 10.30 in public before the measures were eased.
People are so used to wearing the mask everywhere and now with the more infections Omicron strain, I wonder if we will fully embrace the mask-off outdoors fully. I mean, yeah I definitely welcome it as wearing a mask outside can be suffocating especially during hot days but the risk factor is still there.
Of all the memes that came out, this is perhaps the one of the funniest.
This year’s Ramadan and Raya will be a far cry from the norm pre-covid but it’s a start.
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