As long as COVID-19 is around – and it seems like that will be a long time – there are two things we can be sure of:
- There will be COVID-19 rules
- There will be people who break COVID-19 rules
For reasons scientists still don’t understand, laws and regulations seem to become indecipherable when they are related to the pandemic.
Countless people have been caught breaking the rules throughout the pandemic, and even though we can engage in more activities like dining out and travelling now, nothing has changed.
NEA Caught 84 People for Breaking COVID-19 Rules in Various Hawker Centres Over the Weekend
In just three days, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) caught 84 people breaching Safe Management Measures (SMMs) at hawker centres, the agency said in a media release.
The breaches are the same ones that always seem to be committed at eateries, including:
- gathering in groups of more than two
- not maintaining a safe distance of one metre
- not wearing masks or having them pulled down
Enforcement officers caught the lawbreakers over the weekend from 8 to 10 Oct at hawker centres across the country, including Newton Food Centre, Whampoa Food Centre, Haig Road Market & Food Centre, Golden Mile Food Centre, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, and Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre.
NEA noted that instances of breaches have reduced at hawker centres, but officers have still observed occasional non-compliance of SMMs.
“We seek the public’s support to work with Safe Distancing Ambassadors and Enforcement Officers, who are tasked with ensuring that SMMs are complied with for everyone’s safety,” NEA said.
“While the large majority of members of the public are cooperative, there is a small proportion of offenders who are uncooperative and sometimes abusive.”
“The authorities take a serious view of those who verbally or physically abuse public officers, and will press charges in court where warranted,” it added.
Only Fully Vaccinated Individuals Allowed to Dine At Eateries From Tomorrow (13 Oct)
The NEA also reminded patrons that only fully vaccinated individuals will be allowed to dine in at hawker centres from tomorrow (13 Oct).
The only exception is for children aged 12 years and below who are unvaccinated.
Those who are partially vaccinated or unvaccinated can only take away food from hawker centres and coffee shops. They are also not permitted to dine at any other public eatery.
The agency urged seniors to stay away from crowded places and where possible, ask household members or neighbours to purchase takeaway food for them.
Unvaccinated individuals will not be allowed to enter malls from tomorrow either, but there will be a grace period of one week for this.
If you do dine out, do adhere to the SMMs in place. Why ruin that tasty bowl of Mee Pok with a fine or worse?
Plus, you could be putting more vulnerable diners at risk.
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Featured Image: NEA
