MCCY Minister Edwin Tong Self-Isolated After Being Exposed to COVID-19 Case

By
Shawn Ambrose
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Unlike commenters in a social media post about CECA, the coronavirus does not discriminate.

Whether you’re a Goody Feed writer, a minister, or even an orangutan, COVID-19 will infect you if it has a chance.

After all, it’s merely looking for a host to attach itself to.

So, even if you have very important ministerial duties to attend to, you’ll have to take the same precautionary measures everyone else does if you are exposed to the virus.

And one minister did just that recently.

MCCY Minister Edwin Tong Self-Isolated After Being Exposed to COVID-19 Case

Mr Edwin Tong, our Minister for Culture, Community, and Youth (MCCY), is currently self-isolating as he was recently exposed to the coronavirus.

It appears that a healthcare professional who had swabbed Mr Tong several times back while he was in Tokyo that had tested positive.

So, as a precautionary measure, the MCCY Minister is keeping himself in isolation.

Mr Tong had flown to Tokyo earlier this month to support our local athletes during the Paralympics.

Mr Tong revealed his situation in a virtual speech yesterday (17 Sep) at the Patron of the Arts Awards ceremony, which he was unable to attend due to his self-isolation.

In his place, Ms Low Yen Ling, the Minister of State for Culture, Community, and Youth, presented the trophies to the patrons of the arts.

MPs Have to Undergo Supervised Tests Before Parliamentary Sessions

As previously mentioned, no one is exempt from the prevailing COVID-19 rules, as anyone can spread the virus.

This is why MPs had to undergo supervised COVID-19 antigen rapid tests before attending the recent parliamentary sitting on Monday (13 Sep).

Temporary booths were set up inside Parliament House for them to conduct the tests on their own while under supervision.

This, they hope, would “set a good example” for residents here and encourage more of them to conduct self-testing.

So, please shove a swab up your nose regularly, it’s good for the community.

House Visits Suspended, In-Person Visits Reduced

Just as it urged residents to cut down on their social activities, the authorities also imposed a suspension on house visits for MPs earlier this month.

The MPs who have cancelled their house visits have instead asked residents to communicate with them through email, phone calls, or even video calls.

This will not only limit interaction between the MPs and residents, but also prevent people from congregating.

Cases Expected to Surpass 1,000 Soon, But Serious Cases Have Remained Low

As Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in yesterday’s (17 Sep) press conference, case numbers here are expected to surpass the 1,000th mark soon.

Over 900 cases have already been reported in each of the last two days. But the good news is that the number of serious cases has remained low.

This is thanks to our high vaccination rate, as those who are fully inoculated are far less likely to fall severely ill, or even exhibit symptoms.

In fact, as of 16 Sep, serious cases accounted for 0.1% of the total number of infections of the last 28 days.

Still, we have to keep our guard up, and follow the prevailing COVID-19 rules.

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Featured Image: Facebook (Edwin Tong)

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Shawn Ambrose
Email: [email protected]