Month: April 2020
No evidence of pets transmitting COVID-19 to humans, says Malaysia’s veterinary services department
KUALA LUMPUR: Pet owners in Malaysia have been asked not to be too alarmed about their pets being possible spreaders of the COVID-19 virus, and there was no need to subject the animals to coronavirus testing. In a statement to address concerns on whether pets can transmit the virus to their owners, the Malaysian Department of Veterinary
Malaysian Health Ministry urges workers in Singapore to stay on for 2 weeks amid circuit breaker measures
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians who are in Singapore but want to return home during the circuit breaker measures period should consider remaining in Singapore for another two weeks, said Health Ministry director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday (Apr 7), Dr Noor Hisham said the Malaysian government is still discussing with the Singapore
Malaysian Health Ministry says workers in Singapore should stay on for 2 weeks amid circuit breaker measures
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians who are in Singapore but want to return home during the circuit breaker measures period should remain in Singapore for another two weeks, said Health Ministry director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday (Apr 7), Dr Noor Hisham said the Malaysian government is still discussing with the Singapore government
Britain’s supermarkets wrestle with coronavirus demand conundrum
LONDON: Britain’s big supermarkets fear they won’t be able to supply the country’s 60 million people without longer opening hours or a relaxation of social distancing rules introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Industry executives speaking on condition of anonymity said they expected a jump in demand once Britons under lockdown had worked
Indonesia grants Jakarta more powers to tackle COVID-19 outbreak
JAKARTA: Indonesia approved on Tuesday (Apr 7) a request by the Jakarta administration to impose further large-scale social restrictions on the capital, the epicentre for COVID-19 cases in the Southeast Asian country. President Joko Widodo has focused on combating the spread of the disease through social distancing policies, but has resisted the tough lockdown measures adopted
Medicine shortage looms over coronavirus-hit Europe
THE HAGUE: While the world waits for a coronavirus vaccine, medicines used to deal with the symptoms of the disease are increasingly in critically short supply in Europe, the worst-hit continent. From sedatives needed to intubate patients struggling to breathe to anti-malarial drugs heavily backed by US President Donald Trump, the COVID-19 pandemic is eating
UK PM Boris Johnson in intensive care, needed oxygen after COVID-19 symptoms worsened
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was moved to an intensive care unit on Monday (Apr 6) after his coronavirus symptoms worsened, although his Downing Street office said he was still conscious. Britain has no formal succession plan should the prime minister become incapacitated, but Johnson, 55, has asked Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to deputise
WhatsApp tightens limit on forwarding of messages to curb spread of misinformation
SINGAPORE: WhatsApp is imposing tighter restrictions on how many times users can forward a message, in its latest effort to minimise the spread of misinformation. For any message that is deemed “highly forwarded”, users will now only be able to forward it to one chat (person or group), announced the Facebook-owned instant messaging service on Tuesday
New task force on economic resilience to help Singapore bounce back from COVID-19 crisis
SINGAPORE: A new task force focusing on economic resilience will be set up to help the Singapore economy bounce back from the COVID-19 crisis, said Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat on Tuesday (Apr 7). It will be chaired by Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee and Mr Tan Chong Meng, group chief
COVID-19: Ensuring the elderly don’t become isolated during the outbreak
SINGAPORE: Organisations that provide care and support for the elderly are stepping up outreach efforts to prevent loneliness and heightened isolation among old folks during tighter safe distancing measures put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. To protect seniors – a vulnerable group at a higher risk of getting a severe infection – activities for them
Living conditions at S11 Dormitory, Westlite Toh Guan dormitories have ‘stabilised’: Migrant Workers’ Centre
SINGAPORE: The living conditions at the S11 Dormitory @ Punggol and Westlite Toh Guan Dormitories has “stabilised”, particularly in key areas such as the distribution of meals and cleaning, said the Migrant Workers’ Centre (MWC) on Tuesday (Apr 7). Both dormitories were on Sunday (Apr 5) gazetted as isolation areas following a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases.
Man charged after having bak kut teh meal at hawker centre while on stay-home notice
SINGAPORE: A man who posted photos of a bak kut teh meal he had at a hawker centre while he was on a stay-home notice was charged on Tuesday (Apr 7) under the Infectious Diseases Act. Alan Tham Xiang Sheng, 34, is accused of exposing others to the risk of infection when he had reason to
Best response to COVID-19 pandemic is to build resilience in economy, society: DPM Heng
SINGAPORE: Singapore is feeling the full effects of the economic shocks and border closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic around the world and within the country, the more stringent measures being put in place will have a bigger impact on the economy, said Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat on Tuesday (Apr 7). The local

Commentary: E-learning sees no smooth sailing in Malaysia and Indonesia
SHAH ALAM: Governments and companies across the world have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with cancellations of public events and closures of offices, restaurants, museums, schools and universities to avoid masses from gathering. As of Apr 7, over 1.3 million cases and more than 73,000 deaths have been recorded worldwide. Advertisement Advertisement Education institutions around the