Koh Poh Koon admits shortcomings by Govt, operator and employer led to Jurong dormitory unrest

SINGAPORE — Shortcomings by all parties — the employer, the dormitory operator and the Government — led to an incident last month at Westlite Jalan Tukang dormitory, where riot police were deployed, Senior Minister of State for Manpower Koh Poh Koon said on Monday (Nov 1).

Dr Koh said in Parliament that the Government had conducted a thorough review and improved processes, especially when it comes to marshalling more resources to deal with a surge in Covid-19 cases and tightening coordination with dorm operators and employers on the handling of mass virus testing and increases in cases.

Dr Koh added that since Oct 13, calm had been restored to the dormitory and its 3,000 migrant worker residents — about half of them employed by Sembcorp Marine and almost all of them arrivals from China in the last three to four months.

Last month, videos of unrest at the dormitory made their rounds on several online platforms. Riot police were seen forming up outside the dorm entrance and several armoured police vehicles were reportedly seen parked along the road outside.

Addressing questions on the incident, Minister of State for Home Affairs Desmond Tan said in Parliament on Monday that the police units were activated to respond to reports that a group of workers were behaving aggressively “with potential for violence”.

“The police deploy their forces based on the nature and the scale of the incident. Different units will be activated and deployed for different purposes depending on the situation for each case,” he added. “And we generally do not disclose the kind of units and any other details that are related to the operation.”

Food quality and hygiene were also raised by the workers, who shared photos of insects and hair found in their food provided by Sembcorp Marine, online.

The firm said last month that it had taken the caterer to task and insisted on strict adherence to hygiene and quality of food served to the migrant workers employed by the company.

Dr Koh said investigations into failures to fulfil regulatory obligations, such as in the areas of food safety and hygiene, are ongoing.

ADJUSTING TO NEW PROTOCOLS

Providing a full account of the events at the dormitory in Parliament on Monday in response to a series of questions from eight Members of Parliament (MP), Dr Koh said the dormitory operator was adjusting to the new protocols put in place on Oct 2, in line with the shift in Covid-19 guidelines in the community.

Under the new protocols, vaccinated workers who test positive for Covid-19 who are asymptomatic or show only mild symptoms can be monitored in dedicated rooms set aside within the compounds or three centralised recovery facilities. Forty-five larger dormitories have dedicated blocks or rooms set aside for this.

Unvaccinated workers still need to be taken to isolation facilities outside the dormitories.

However on Oct 10, there were 174 Covid-19 positive cases detected in the Westlite Jalan Tukang dorm and the dormitory operator had difficulty processing the sudden surge of workers that needed to be taken to external facilities, said Dr Koh.

The next day, key staff members also did not turn up for work after they tested positive for Covid-19 and officers from the Ministry of Manpower’s Assurance, Care and Engagement (ACE) group stepped in to assist the operator.

Dr Koh said a mass testing exercise was carried out on Oct 12 in response to the surge in infections. It found another 278 positive Covid-19 cases that needed to be taken to external facilities.

“This happened while the team was trying to process the previous surge and the dormitory operator struggled to process the high volume.

“While the ACE officers tried to assist the operator between Oct 11 and 12, it, too, did not put in sufficient resources during this time to triage, process and convey the Covid-19 positive workers before the second surge on Oct 13,” he added.

DOUBLED THE NUMBER OF OFFICERS DEPLOYED

Dr Koh said after the incident on Oct 13, ACE doubled the numbers of officers deployed to the dormitory and by that evening, 70 per cent of workers who needed to be taken to recovery or isolation facilities were sent there.

The backlog was cleared by the next day.

Dr Koh added that along with Sembcorp Marine and Westlite, ACE officers have assured workers that there would be timely conveyance of infected individuals, among others.

Asked by Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh if there would be enough ACE officers to cover the dormitories islandwide, Mr Koh said: “There will never be enough on a regular basis, to plant people in all 1,300 dormitories (here).

“But how we go about doing this system leverages on the partnership we have with our stakeholders — the dormitory operators, the employers, and of course we have volunteers within the migrant worker community.”

In response to a question by Mr Desmond Choo, MP of Tampines Group Representation Constituency, on why other agencies and non-governmental agencies (NGOs) were not brought in to support the ACE officers, Dr Koh said external parties could step in only after the unrest and the backlog of Covid-19 cases were resolved.

“I think with Covid cases going up in the dorm, it would not have been appropriate to allow NGOs to be exposed to the risk of infection in a dorm like this. And because the work was about medical care, about conveyance, it is not necessarily something that the NGOs have the capability to provide."

Dr Koh said that in summary, the employer Sembcorp Marine’s shortcomings were that the workers were upset over food quality and hygiene, the dormitory operator Centurion Corporation struggled to cope with the surge in Covid-19 numbers and the Government, through ACE, “stepped in but did not put in sufficient resources in time to resolve the problem”.

https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/jurong-dormitory-unrest-followed-shortcomings-operator-employer-govt-koh-poh-koon

Aid floods in for Chinese workers alleging neglect in Singapore dormitory hit by Covid-19

A viral WeChat post about Chinese foreign workers grappling with poor conditions and delayed access to medical aid in a Singapore dormitory affected by Covid-19 has prompted an outpouring of aid and support, including from Beijing’s embassy in the city state.

Local media said disquiet in the dormitory in Singapore’s largely industrial Jurong district reached a tipping point on Wednesday, with armoured riot police called in at one point as a precautionary measure.

The Singapore Police Force declined to comment.

Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower meanwhile said its officers had been deployed to the site to investigate.

“Preliminary investigations found that there were indeed some delays in conveyancing workers who tested positive for Covid-19 from their rooms to a care or recovery facility,” the ministry said.

The WeChat post, by an account that frequently posts Singapore-centric news, on Tuesday said about a quarter of the Westlite Jalan Tukang dormitory’s 2,000 residents had tested positive for Covid-19.

Among other things, the post claimed the process of isolating infected residents was inadequate, that there was a shortage of medical supplies and that only critically ill workers were taken from the dormitory to receive medical assistance.

“People were down with fever and positive cases were everywhere. The virus lurks in every corner of the dormitory,” it added.

The post included screenshots of what appeared to be conversations with workers living in the dormitory, who said that the rooms were not disinfected and that they often found worms, flies and strands of hair in their food. Other images show workers donning helmets and outfits that belonged to shipbuilding firm Sembcorp Marine.

“Chinese workers face unfair treatment and their dignity is trampled on,” the post said. “They love Singapore and are willing to sacrifice to help the virus situation but they are now shoved aside.”

Among other things, the post claimed the process of isolating infected residents was inadequate, that there was a shortage of medical supplies and that only critically ill workers were taken from the dormitory to receive medical assistance.

“People were down with fever and positive cases were everywhere. The virus lurks in every corner of the dormitory,” it added.

The post included screenshots of what appeared to be conversations with workers living in the dormitory, who said that the rooms were not disinfected and that they often found worms, flies and strands of hair in their food. Other images show workers donning helmets and outfits that belonged to shipbuilding firm Sembcorp Marine.

“Chinese workers face unfair treatment and their dignity is trampled on,” the post said. “They love Singapore and are willing to sacrifice to help the virus situation but they are now shoved aside.”

Embassy weighs in

A spokeswoman for the Chinese embassy told the South China Morning Post it viewed the episode with “great importance”.

“The embassy has contacted and communicated with the relevant Singapore authorities and they are working hard to resolve the workers’ demands.”

The spokeswoman added that the workers’ emotions were now “stable”, and that it had sent medical supplies such as masks and disinfectant wipes to the dormitory.

“We will continue to track developments, maintain communication with the Singapore side, and protect the health and safety of our workers,” she said.

After the post went viral, Philip Chan, president of the Hong Kong Singapore Business Association and the Kowloon Club, donated 20,000 masks to the workers, saying that he “just wanted to help” after hearing about their situation.

On social media, Chinese nationals rallied others to donate items to the low-wage workers. “Even though I am physically in China, I can buy supplies online and help reduce the suffering of my compatriots,” one WeChat user wrote.

Surge of cases

Singapore is experiencing its biggest surge of cases since the pandemic began, following a Delta-fuelled outbreak that dates back to August.

The daily caseload stood at 3,190 on Wednesday, with 498 cases occurring in dormitories.

Most of the recent infections were not serious – in the past 28 days, out of about 61,000 cases, 98.5 per cent were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms. Only 1.1 per cent needed oxygen support and 0.1 per cent were in intensive care.

The government has pledged to press ahead with a “living with Covid” plan once the current situation stabilises. A four-week period of heightened social gathering restrictions – including a two-person cap for outdoor dining – expires on October 24.

Rights activists, however, have voiced concerns over the welfare of the country’s dormitory-dwelling migrant workers, whose movements have been severely restricted since the start of the pandemic, unlike other residents.

Before the present surge, the government had been planning for a phased easing of restrictions on migrant workers starting September.

Earlier in October, the Minister of Manpower Tan See Leng said in a parliamentary reply that Singapore was mindful that “our migrant workers have not been able to visit the community for some time”, and was committed to easing the restrictions on them.

Authorities faced fierce criticism last year over cases in cramped dormitories, and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s administration later unveiled plans to build new more spacious residences for the workers.

Primarily from India, Bangladesh and China, migrant workers take on jobs shunned by Singaporeans in industries such as construction, estate maintenance and manufacturing.

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3152384/aid-floods-chinese-workers-alleging-neglect-singapore

Sembcorp Marine says sorlee to its workers liao, will all be forgiven?

PAP xia suay to the max!

He's not my brother.....

He's not my brother.....

He's not my brother.....

Looks like they have gotten bolder since Dr Tan took over from Josexfiend Teo, no wonder the riot police had to be activated in case the workers were in the mood to flip some cars and lorries.

Ah the government's pet "FT" imports have turned around and bitten it in the ass, very naise.