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Wong Kan Seng warning Singaporeans against
complacency
Warning against complacency, 10 years after SARS
SINGAPORE — The Republic’s success story in fending off the deadly Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak a decade ago, which has since become an international positive case study along with countries such as Vietnam, is one that bears repeating.
But for former Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng, who had led the inter-ministry SARS taskforce at the height of the crisis, the worry is that despite all the systems and processes put in place to cope with another epidemic — including documents for public servants detailing how to respond, step-by-step, to a national crisis — complacency has set in among the public as memories fade.
Society has also changed, he noted, not least the rise of social media which could be a game-changer in how countries cope with future health scares: It could become a double-edged sword — spreading confusion and panic as rumours swirl. At the same time, it could facilitate the dissemination of public health announcements.
In other words, there is no guarantee that Singapore can replicate its success should another epidemic strike.
“Today, compared with 2003, definitely the Government is much better prepared in this, and I think the public, too, would be familiar. But of course 10 years on, many people may not recall (what happened),” said Mr Wong, 67, in an interview yesterday to mark the 10th anniversary of SARS.
“Some were too young at that time ... they might have heard of SARS ... but I don’t think they know what we faced at the time.”
Mr Wong, who was also Minister for Home Affairs, noted that Singapore has not faced any crisis of a similar scale in recent times.
“I think when people have not experienced any crisis for quite a while, they would get complacent ... From time to time, we’ll read about fatalities caused by H1N1, H5N1, in other countries, and (Singaporeans) think it didn’t happen here, and therefore we’ll be all right. So, complacency could set in. But for the public agencies, they can’t afford to be so, they must continue to run the exercises,” cautioned Mr Wong, who was in the Cabinet for more than 25 years before stepping down in 2011. He remains a Member of Parliament for Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency.
In a candid interview, Mr Wong also reflected on the lessons learnt from the SARS crisis, including how, in hindsight, the authorities should have isolated the virus at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) earlier than it did on March 22, 2003.
“Once we recognised it, we should have found a way to contain it within one hospital, as Ground Zero. Then we don’t admit any other types of patients. We didn’t do it early enough. By that time, infected patients had started clusters in other hospitals, the Singapore General Hospital and National University Hospital,” he said.
Less than three months after the first SARS patient was admitted to hospital with suspected pneumonia, Singapore was declared SARS-free in May 2003.
Ultimately, the SARS virus claimed the lives of 33 people here and infected 283 people in total. Around the world, it killed 774 people.
The economy was crippled as Singaporeans shunned public places, and international tourism took a beating.
In the aftermath of the SARS crisis, the Government set up a homefront management centre, which will tackle all crises, including flu pandemics and terrorist attacks. Publications were also produced, detailing planning parameters as well as a national response plan for the Government, Mr Wong said.
He added: “For all the ministries that have a role to play in a crisis, they have their plans, based on scenarios that were worked out and they need to exercise those plans.”
Much has been said about the impact of the rise of social media around the world, including how trust in the authorities has eroded.
Mr Wong noted: “Whatever goes on Facebook, which is not backed up by facts and authoritative sources, the public should ignore.”
Should a national crisis strike, the Government “has to learn how to respond to comments on Facebook, and most importantly, to communicate as quickly as possible to the public”, he added.
While society has become more polarised, Mr Wong urged Singaporeans to retain that “unity of purpose, sense of trust” in order to overcome future crises. He acknowledged that right now, there “may be a lot of noises about things the Government does”. But when crisis strikes, managing it requires “not a flat organisation where everyone has their views”. “There ought to be proper authority and accountability” in a crisis situation, he reiterated.
He added: “When you have a national crisis, and a healthcare scare like (SARS), how would polarisation help you in coping with it? Ultimately, you need to know what you need to do. Can I be treated? Will the Government tell me what goes on and help me overcome it? Will the Government restore confidence, particularly when it affects the economy and livelihood of many people? Who can (do that)? Not the thousands of noises you hear on the Internet.”
While the SARS crisis might be a distant memory for some, Mr Wong stressed that there were important lessons to be learnt: “For instance, how do we plan for alternative sources of food supply? At the schools level, there were half a million children in schools, how do we cope?
“Public transport was another problem, there were two million people in the workforce, how do we ensure the public transport system continues to function, and that (employees) continue to go to work?”
He added: “Strong coordination among various agencies is important, and at the public level, people must know what they need to do, they must be responsible.”
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/warning-against-complacency-10-years-after-sars
