Criteria To Close School - What Is MOE Waiting For?

[This post was also sent to contact@moe.gov.sg, ATTN: Ong Ye Kung]

Dear MOE (Attn: Ong Ye Kung),
With reference to the recent article:
No plans to close schools for now, says Education Minister Ong Ye Kung

It was observed that your decision was for all schools to carry on as usual, despite various online petitions going against it.

Recently, NUS had announced that ONLY classes at affected NUS professor's faculty to be conducted online:
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/coronavirus-all-classes-at-affected-nus-professors-faculty-to-be-conducted-online

I would like to seek your advice on your plan for the containment of the COVID-19 epidemic for schools. In short, what are you waiting for?

Are you waiting for confirmed cases in schools before you would move the students to SLS (Student Learning Space)? Or are you waiting for some deaths to occur first?

In the event that there is a confirmed case or death in a school, are you going to instruct all schools to move to SLS? Or just that particular affected school?

Or, are you going to allow ONLY that particular affected class to do SLS?

Yes, Singapore has a great crisis management and reporting mechanism, unfortunately, it fell greatly behind other countries in terms of its determination on the containment of the COVID-19 virus. Other countries, far behind Singapore in terms of confirmed cases, had already stopped schools, and even extended the closure, yet Singapore continued school as usual!

China had proven to us that COVID-19, apart from being more contagious, had also killed far more people than SARS, and it is still increasing.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/09/coronavirus-china-death-toll-for-new-virus-exceeds-that-of-sars.html

Many parents had provided great suggestions, including SLS, moving March holiday or June holiday forward. Why didn't you adopt any of those? Is it too troublesome for you to make changes to keep children safe?

Taking a step back, have you ever wondered why there is such a strong call to keep the children safe NOW?

People with lower intellectual ability and lower analytical skill tend to attribute this to the fear of the novel virus, and I sincerely hope that you are not one of them as that is ABSOLUTELY WRONG!

In case you are one of them, let me explain it to you. Please pay attention.

The whole episode of this COVID-19 started in Singapore around end of January 2020. Following that, there were a lot of cries for government to stop mass activities, including the following:

4th Feb 2020: Multiple CNY mass celebrations, throughout Singapore (such as this)

PM Lee Doing Lo-Hei 

7th Feb 2020: Loyang Tua Pek Kong - Chinese New Year -Yuan Xiao Celebration 2020, where a petition calling for a stop failed (https://www.yan.sg/yuanxiaohounlmingjiaotimg/)

11-16 Feb 2020: Singapore Airshow 2020

Sadly, all of those cries had fallen on deaf ears. Today, we are currently seeing outbreaks in churches. If you were to look at the timeline carefully, if any of the earlier mass gatherings were to have any outbreaks, NOW would be the time when many of the attendees are starting to show mild flu-like symptoms.

Can you imagine this: If parents who attended the events were infected, they are likely to start exhibiting mild symptoms and infecting their children now, and those children, may not have any symptoms, and they are still going to school in the next 2 weeks...

Mr Ong Ye Kung, you are the BIG BOSS, you have the final say. I had highlighted to you the huge risk that you are taking and subjecting everyone to, as well as how you could avoid those potential issues by moving kids away from school for the next 2 weeks. At the minimum, do this for primary schools as they are the most vulnerable.

By not stopping mass gatherings timely, Singapore had already missed the 1st Golden Containment opportunity. Being the top infected country outside of China is the proof of this.

The next 2-weeks is the 2nd Containment opportunity, and it is crucial to move students away from one another.

People had been highlighting this risk since the beginning of Feb 2020. We all know that you have a major event, Singapore Airshow 2020, to take into consideration, to not cause fear among the delegates and attendees, as well as not to have any potential financial impact for Singapore.

However, the Airshow would be ending this week and I sincerely hope that you would take some time this weekend for some serious considerations - Move children away from school for the next 2 weeks.

Event such as Mobile World Congress (MWC) was also called off, and in the article, it was stated: "To take this risk would be irresponsible."

As a responsible organisation, I hope you can exhibit the corresponding responsibility, and not subject our kids to such unnecessary risks.

Again, you are the BIG BOSS, you have the final say. If you still insist on NOT keeping children safe and away from school for the next 2 weeks, and if there are any students being infected, especially via the mass gatherings mentioned above, I can assure you that all parents will point their fingers at you.

And when they do, I can also assure you that it will not just be the index finger.

You had been warned. We, as parents, shall hold you wholly responsible for the risks that you are subjecting our children to.

For your serious reconsideration, with the backdrop that Singapore Airshow 2020 would be ending this week.


Regards,
XimplifyIt

Don't Panic Buy! You are more likely to catch the Wuhan Virus if you rushed to buy!

When I saw the news about Singaporeans panic buying, I had a big laugh and almost fall off my chair! 🤣

People Panic Buy

The given reason for the panic buying was that Singapore had raised its Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (DORSCON) level to Orange from Yellow.

So what is so funny about the panic buying? Well, the issue is the motive.

In China, people are advised to stay home and to reduce going out in order to avoid contacts and to reduce possibility of infection, therefore, they had to buy more stuff in order to reduce the need of going out, thereby reducing exposure of infection.

However, what Singaporeans did last night was a joke! They rushed to buy items, and the end result is yet another unnecessary clustering, unknowingly increasing their own risks! In other words, if there was a sick panic-buyer, then those who also panic-buy last night would be at a high risk of infection!

Can you see the difference in the motive now? The motive in China was to avoid unnecessary contacts and exposure; however in Singapore, people ended up doing the opposite!

Therefore, instead of jumping into the bandwagon of panic buying, it is wiser to follow advice, i.e. avoid unnecessary gathering!

BTW, did the stock really run out? No! This morning, I went to NTUC fairprice, and this is the situation:

So, did I buy? NO!!! Why? Because the queue was longer than usual, and as a precautionary measure, I smiled, shook my head and quickly left the place!

Later, while waiting to pump petrol, I stopped by the store and bought my pack of bread as there were almost no people there - safe time to buy stuff if you did not want to be in crowded places! This was the view at the petrol station:

Therefore, the advice is always to avoid unnecessarily crowded places. If you have masks, decide whether you would want to use them now, as it might be more precious later on. Even if you don't have masks, just make sure that you keep a proper distance from people who appear sick, or if you want to be doubly safe, then just keep a distance from all people!

Alternatively, you could leverage online purchases, with delivery to your home instead. I know it might be difficult to get a delivery slot, but seriously, there is really no need to rush to buy food now!

However, if you are still worried, then just get one or two days more than usual. Buying a whole month of noodles is really stupid, are you really going to eat the same stuff the whole month? No! It would be so sickening and demotivating! Also, in terms of nutritional needs, it is important to get a broad range of food so as to help your body to better fight off infection! Take note that buying too much food will more likely end up with wastage and you are also more likely to end up eating food that is not fresh - not a good idea when your body needs the best nutrition for defence!

I know some people might still be worried about shortage of food. Let me tell you this: It is HIGHLY UNLIKELY that this will happened! This is because Singapore election MUST be held by early 2021!!! The situation now involved the Government's own rice bowl, if they ever made people go hungry, I am sure they would be out of parliament, and they know it! You now have the trump card (voting slip)!

Therefore, from another perspective, it is relatively lucky that this unfortunate event happened now, rather than right after an election. This is because we can now be very sure that the Government would put in their very best to resolve this! Remember, their rice bowls are on the rocks, they are more worried than you!

In summary, let's stay cool, stay tuned to the various advisories and adhere to them, I am sure we will get through this, together!

[Note: To subscribe to Gov.sg WhatsApp Advisory, click on this link.]

Genuine or Fake Surgical Masks - 3 Quick Tests to Find Out!

With the Wuhan coronavirus on the loose, getting a proper mask for protection is important. However, with the shortage of masks, there are now many fake masks circulating around, which would not protect you.

A good quality surgical mask generally has a three-ply layer with the innermost layer used for absorbing moisture, the middle layer is a filter and outermost layer repels water.

I had compiled my experiences from various sources, including popular posts from doctors in China, Internet, etc. and summarised it into 3 simple tests, which I had also personally tested to share with you.

Unfortunately, all the tests are destructive, which means you need to sacrifice one mask to perform all these tests. To reduce wastage, you can do the test at the end of the day before you throw yours away.

1) Visual Test

If it is a 3-ply mask, logically, it would need to have 3 layers. Cut open the mask and you should see a very obvious 3-layers, as shown below. The 3 layers would typically consist of a Translucent piece (top), White piece (middle), and the coloured piece (Green, Blue, or even White).

3-Ply Mask

If you don't have those 3 layers, then it is not a 3-ply mask.

2) Water Test

Surgical masks, not only protect others from your cough and sneeze, they also provide protection against others'. Therefore, the outer layer is designed to be waterproof!

Fold your mask such that the outer side forms a funnel and pour some water into it. You should be able to see that the mask is holding up the water properly. Apart from that, touch the bottom of the funnel, make sure it is not wet or damp. The following video illustrates this test.

Water Test - Make Sure the Other Side Is Not Damp

3) Fire Test

The middle layer is a filter, not a piece of paper. Therefore, if you were to light it with a flame, it WILL NOT catch fire! The following video illustrate the outcome of burning the middle layer, compared with burning a piece of tissue.

Fire Test - Filter of Masks Will Not Catch Fire

List of Doubtful Masks

The following are some list of doubtful masks as posted in Chinese Blog. I am just sharing it here for information only. It may or may not mean that they are not good; in fact, some are just indications that there are counterfeits for that brand. Anyway, to be doubly safe, always double check.

 

To be fair to this "Face Mask" brand, there seems to be both Genuine and Fake Surgical Masks. See:

http://sg.carousell.com/p/276326927 (Doing the Fire Test)

Summary

In summary, I really hate to write these. Firstly, I am not an authoritative person to do this, but I have to share my experience and knowledge with everyone since there is such an urgent need. 

In fact, all these should have been undertaken by the respective countries' Government; unfortunately, in the current chaotic situation, not only did they not supply their people with quality masks, they also did not provide any useful guidance. Therefore, this is just a small little stuff that I could contribute and I hope it is useful for everyone.

Last but not least, should you start wearing a mask now? Well, the best action is still to follow your Government's direction, technically, they are the people who have the full visibility and who are in a better position to assess your local situation.

For example, I understand that in China, the advice is to put on a mask whenever you go out, without a mask, you would not be allowed into any malls. In Singapore, the advice is to wear a mask only if you are sick (as of 5th Feb 2020). Both advice are logical since in China, the risk is high and the core focus is on reducing any further spread of the virus; In Singapore, since the whole World has demand for masks, the idea is not to waste those unnecessarily, at least not for now.


Wish everyone good luck and all the best in this Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.

Open Letter to Lawrence Wong - Export Control for Masks and Medical Equipment

[The following letter had been sent via email to addressees including: LawrenceWongST@gmail.com, lee_hsien_loong@pmo.gov.sg, goh_chok_tong@pmo.gov.sg. Email addresses are sourced from the Internet. If you agree with this suggestion, please let them know too.]

Dear Lawrence Wong,
With reference to your speech on Monday, 3rd Feb 2020,  you mentioned [0:20-0:26]:
"No stockpile is sufficient if we do not use the supply judiciously"

No Stockpile Is Sufficient If We Do Not Use The Supply Judiciously

You also mentioned [0:44 - 1:02]:
"At the same time, with virus spreading to countries all over the World, there is now a global scramble for masks. Producers around the world are struggling to keep pace with the demand, and some places like Taiwan had even ban the export of masks."

Taiwan Banned Masks Export

Banning export of masks might be a little overboard, however, having export control would be reasonable, isn't it?

You might also like to take note that in just 2 separate verifiable events:
200 Cartons of Masks (72,000 pieces) Exported from Singapore on 2nd Day of CNY
[https://ximplifyit.blogspot.com/2020/01/200-cartons-of-masks-exported-from-sg.html]

'Procurement of 160,000 masks from Singapore'
[http://www.cunman.com/new/685bc2c7f1df42c381fa54ce20aba524]

At least a quarter millions of masks were exported out of Singapore! How many other such events there were, and their respective quantities, I do not have the numbers.

Given the fact that a quarter millions masks had been exported in 2 single events, it is only fair and valid to raise the concern that the majority of your so-called 5 millions released from National Stockpile to the retailers could have simply ended up being exported out of Singapore instead. I sincerely hope that you have the number to prove otherwise. Unfortunately, without export control, there is no way for you to produce any meaningful numbers to rebut this concern.

Therefore, paraphrasing your own words above, I am sure you will also agree that:
"No stockpile is sufficient if we do not control the export judiciously"

With the recent renewed call from China for masks donation, I am certain many more such exports of masks are underway, thus, your immediate action is required.

As a caring society such as Singapore, I am certain that many Singaporeans are fully supportive of helping China; however, it CANNOT be undertaken indiscriminately (as highlighted in the above article), and should be performed in a planned and controlled manner.

Worst, without proper government-to-government collaboration, any donations would neither be timely nor fairly distributed, as was observed from the various China Red Cross incidents.

As a support for China, I am certain many Singaporeans are willing to donate their 4 free masks in exchange for your IMMEDIATE ACTION on the export control.

In the video [1:17 - 1:56], you mentioned: 
"Because of the rapid consumption rate that we had seen earlier and the potential threat to our supply lines, we decided to change the method of distribution of masks from our National Stockpile. And that is why, firstly, we slowed our supply of masks to retailers and prioritised the masks for essential services, namely our frontline healthcare workers. Secondly, for the general public, we decided to release masks directly from the stockpile to households so that every family would have access to a mask should someone in the family fall sick and need to use one to see a doctor."

Fair Distribution Of Masks

In [2:30 - 2:42], you had also mentioned how great "GovTech" is. Therefore, I am sure there would be no issue for GovTech to come up with a system where Singaporeans, rather than going to retailers every few hours to check for stocks, could place a purchase indent request to buy their masks directly from our 'National Stockpile', at close to cost price, collectable via NTUC fairprice, SingPost, etc. where the limit on the quantity could be controlled by you. This not only serve the original purposes of distributing to every household, it still allowed Singaporeans to donate the masks by not indenting it. On top of that, it saved Singaporeans a lot of valuable time and minimised all the frustrations.

Apart from that, this would help to alleviate our NSFs from those mundane tasks of packing and to focus on other more important national defence related areas. The details of this, as well as the allocation suggestions were explained in the prior email to you, for your immediate considerations, tuning and rollout.

As a caring society, such as Singapore, I am very certain that many Singaporeans are willing to donate their 4 free masks that the Government had allocated to them, in return for your immediate actions on the export control as well as providing an online purchase indent system.


In summary, in order to ensure public peace and order and not to create panic, I am sure you will agree that:
1) Implement export control of Masks and related medical equipment are prudent and necessary
2) Implement a system for Singaporeans to place a purchase indent to buy their masks directly from the 'National Stockpile', at close to cost price, collectable via NTUC fairprice, SingPost, etc. is no doubt a very simple task for GovTech to implement within a week or so
3) Call for Singaporeans to donate their 4 masks to Wuhan in return for the above actions from the Government, would be both humane and fair

Since the above would enhance public confidence, ensure a suitable supply of masks, proper allocation of masks and prevent profiteering, as well as making Singapore a more humane and caring society, I am very certain that you would be more eager than any Singaporeans to push the above suggested plans through immediately.

Lastly, as what you have also reiterated [3:07 - 3:29]: 
"Let me reiterate once again, that there are sufficient supply of masks in Singapore, as long as they are used responsibly. So let us all do our part to ensure the sustainability of our masks stockpile, so that our frontline healthcare workers will have the necessary supplies to carry out their work."

Sufficient Supply Of Masks - Use Responsibly

Kindly allow me to reiterate my point by paraphrasing yours:
"Let me reiterate once again, that there are sufficient supply of masks in Singapore, as long as export are controlled responsibly. So let us all do our part to ensure the sustainability of our masks stockpile, so that our frontline healthcare workers will have the necessary supplies to carry out their work."

Thanks and looking forward to your announcement on the above soon. Singaporeans, as well as all Chinese Nationals, are all getting in line, getting ready to thank you for your immediate action on this.

From:
XimplifyIt
[When things get too complicated, just XimplifyIt!]

200 Cartons of Masks (72,000 pieces) Exported from Singapore on 2nd Day of CNY - Why It Was OK

You may have already know that 200 cartons of Masks (72,000 pieces) was exported from Singapore on the 2nd day of CNY. The destination was Wuhan, China, and it was performed voluntarily by Chinese Nationals in Singapore.

 Image Source: https://www.yan.sg/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/frc-ac3d616543c2a5254ae57b145cc5bb97.jpg

 

 Image Source: https://www.yan.sg/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/frc-f3f5126dd37eff82ed7798fed9da591f.jpg

  Image Source: https://www.yan.sg/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/frc-91fd3bf91539a9366a70ddfdb3eca920.jpg

Before anyone gets emotional, we need to accept the fact that China, especially Wuhan, is in a much critical situation, and would need the masks more than any one of us. The situation is very bad there, it was said that even doctors had to use transparent file folders to improvise masks.

  Image Source:  https://www.yan.sg/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/frc-6ae29cc0b6948864aabdd8ac879a4338.jpg

The end results of that 200 cartons of Masks, which was sent to Wuhan, China, was very well received by the local authority. On that, we have to award praises to those Chinese Nationals in Singapore, for taking the initiative to help China, and potentially reducing any further complication of the current situation.

However, taking a step back, there are 3 questions that need to be answered:
1) How many masks would China need per month?
2) After all other cities in China contributed to the required amount, how much more could the international communities contribute to that?
3) How many masks could each country contribute, in order to ensure that it would not deplete its own needs?

Well, I don't have those answers, you wouldn't have the answers, those Chinese Nationals wouldn't have those answers too. Possibly, only the Government would have the answers to those questions.

So for those 200 cartons of Masks (72,000 pieces), which was exported from Singapore on the 2nd day of CNY, was it too much for Singapore to handle? Seriously, I don't think so, because technically, Singapore DO NOT need the masks then (and yet). Therefore, personally, I would still support the act that those China Nationals did. The act was not just a demonstration of patriotism, it was also a great act of humanity. As Singaporeans (whether you are of Chinese race or not), we should be fully supportive of that.

However, the following questions popped up in my mind:
1) Today, are masks still being exported from Singapore directly from the factories to anywhere else? How many are there?
2) Are there any statistics on the quantity exported, the purpose and by who?
3) Are there anybody working as a 'gate-keeper' to ensure that a reasonable amount was exported without depleting the country's own needs?

Again, I don't have the answer. If you have been trying to get some masks, you will come across these familiar scenes.

 Image Source: https://mustsharenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Lot-One-Shoppers-Queue-For-Surgical-Masks-To-Cope-With-Wuhan-Mania-Each-Only-Allowed-To-Buy-10-V2.jpg

Enquiring for Masks Directly At Pharmacy (No Stock)

Watsons - No Stock

 

Unity - No Stock

Guardian - No Stock

So is there a shortage of masks currently? Well, this depends on which angle you are looking from. Although we often see those out-of-stock signs, typically, in the next few days, the stock would be replenished; of course, to be honest, it would again run out in a couple of minutes.

So, should we all run out, get into long queues to try and grab as many masks as we could now? Strictly speaking, we shouldn't. On the other hand, should we just ignore all these and not get any? Well, I would say we shouldn't too; at the very least, we need to have some on hand to standby, in case we fall sick or when the situation got worse.

The current directive from Government is not to use masks indiscriminately, and to use it only if you are feeling unwell. This is indeed a very logical recommendation (at least for now) and I fully support it. We should not be wasteful on the masks at this moment of time, at least, not yet. Government had also taken the initiative to distribute 4 masks for each household for free.

Now the golden question: How many masks should we have for standby? Again, the answer is not with me, because this depends on the following factors:
1) Usage pattern and number of members in the household
2) Frequency and duration of sickness (also are we supposed to reuse the mask for the whole duration of the same illness?)
3) Turnaround time to replenish the masks

If the turnaround time to replenish the mask is one day, and it is readily available when one needs it, just like buying a bottle of coke, you go to the store, grab the bottle and pay, then basically 4 masks would be more than enough for a household. In the event that someone falls sick, one could just walk into any store to get new supplies. Unfortunately, if you have tried buying masks, you will know that this is not the case.

I know it is tiring and stressful to keep going to stores every few hours to check stocks; even if you are lucky, at most you would be getting is only 10 pieces of masks. Worst, the queues and the Out-Of-Stock notices really freak people out!!!

How could this be improved? The following are my suggestions:
1) Stop / Control unauthorised bulk purchases, especially from factories / wholesalers
2) Implement online purchases via NTUC Fairprice online, using SingPass (or whatever) to limit and track the purchase amount per household, and with SingPost/RCs as a delivery/collection option
3) Stop profiteering activities

(1) Stop / Control unauthorised bulk purchases, especially from factories / wholesalers

For (1), this should have been done in the first place, and I have no idea why it was not.

(2) Implement online purchases via NTUC Fairprice online

For (2), all the infrastructures are there, there is basically no technical issues. I believe that Singaporeans are generally very reasonable and willing to pay a fair price for it and wait a few weeks to receive it. The key point is to give People the assurance that they could get the masks they required. Going on the media, showing the warehouse of the stock for the masks is simply too superficial; today, with all the dramas/movies/Netflix, people are smarter and they only look at what they have on-hand.

Back to the earlier question: How many masks should we have for standby? This would require the Government to come up with the proposed usage scenario, turnaround time for replenishment, and adjust this according to the changing situation.

(3) Stop profiteering activities

For (3), I have always been wondering why there are no control on this. I can understand why individuals are selling items for a profit, however if the price is exorbitant and with quantity exceeding what a normal business would have, isn't it time for action?

For businesses, ACRA requires all businesses to provide 2 Standard Industrial Classification (SSIC) codes to indicate the nature of the business. Isn't this enough to even single out businesses who are trying to make a quick profit? On top of that we also have Price Control Act, couldn't we leverage on that? In the worst case, if all else are not applicable, just erect a new law for this tomorrow then, isn't this the best way to demonstrate the agility and efficiency of a single-party government?

In summary, I would like to highlight the fact that unknown and uncertainties often create the worst fear. Instead of reiterating that stock level is sufficient, and advising people not to panic, it would be more effective to advise, for now, what is the recommended number of masks for standby, suggested usage and the turnaround time to replenish the masks. At the same time, rollout the online ordering system now, since I believe the fulfillment might take weeks.

Remember, when people have no idea on the recommended number of masks for standby, suggested usage and the turnaround time to replenish the masks, they would naturally try to play safe and gauge these on their own. What people need is a DEMONSTRATED assurance that they could get the masks when they required! Online ordering system with a fulfillment date of a specific quantity is all they need!

Lastly, I would like to highlight that it is better to announce the rollout of an online ordering system now, with a later rollout date; rather than to do it after the situation worsen (in case it might). Even though both approaches might be 'live' on the same day, the perception of proactiveness rather than reactiveness would make a great differences when People evaluate the handling of this whole episode later this year.