Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening.

From an unknown virus a few months ago, SARS is now a well-known acronym, and reams of paper have been written about it. When the first SARS case hit us, and we realised the infectious nature of the virus and that it was unknown with no vaccine, we quickly put in place the isolate-ringfence-contain strategy. We designated Tan Tock Seng Hospital the hospital to deal with SARS cases, started contact tracing and put contacts under home quarantine. The initial lack of knowledge of the virus led to fear, affecting people’s routine and movements. It had to be addressed through concerted Government-wide actions to bring life back to normal.

Many Singaporeans are disappointed that a new case was announced on 18 May, at the eleventh hour when we were hoping to be taken off the WHO list of SARS-affected countries. But we should take such setback in our stride, learn to accept it and move on to ensure we stay on high alert. So long as SARS is in this part of the world, we will be vulnerable.

Even if a vaccine is developed, SARS will still be around. Like flu, even when people are vaccinated against it, the problem may not go away. Singapore is a country with open borders. Even there is no local transmission, there may be imported cases from time to time. As long as we continue to quickly detect, isolate and contain the cases, we should be able to control the situation.

At the individual level, I am glad temperature checks is becoming a way of life for more and more people. This is another positive sign of Singaporeans adjusting to the new situation. The thermometer is our personal "weapon" to alert us of a fever. Soon each household will be getting a thermometer and 2 surgical masks in the SARS Toolkit.

Over the past weeks, we have seen how courageous and dedicated healthcare staff battled SARS and keep it under control. A few lost their lives in the battle. We salute all of them. The cleaners and other staff who continue working in the hospitals, to support the healthcare professionals, are also worthy of our gratitude. We are also heartened by the actions of the responsible public, pulling together as one. In expressing appreciation for the healthcare workers, there have been spontaneous actions, whether activities by bigger organizations for the Courage Fund or by smaller groups doing their bit. They exemplify the Singapore spirit. All these have helped in bonding the community together.

As our battle continues, it will be this Singapore spirit which will see us through the fight against SARS. It was with this spirit that we dealt with the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) cluster. Our healthcare workers acted most professionally and with great commitment. The IMH episode also tested the co-operation of the inter-agency group comprising Ministry of Health, HDB, STB, the hotels which offered the accommodation and many others. All chipped in to do their part to make the whole operation a very smooth one.

In fighting SARS, it is also very important that the public are given information on what is SARS, and what precautions to take. The community has been briefed in various languages including dialects. The media companies have also been forthcoming and responsive in coming up quickly with programmes to reach out to the dialect-speaking groups, even doing infomercials on SARS.

Tonight, we see another initiative from the media companies. The Starhub, Singapore Press Holdings and MediaCorp have come together to launch a SARS Channel. This daily 12-hour programmes on SARS will be an avenue for viewers who have missed SARS programmes previously aired on free-to-air channels.

This initiative is heartening, especially considering that this public service channel is put up by three media rivals in difficult economic times. That they have done it in double-quick time is even more praiseworthy. They are also sponsored by NTUC and DBS. "Thank you" to all those who initiated, planned, operationalised and sponsored this channel.

The latest SARS case is a reminder that we cannot afford to let our guard down. We must continue to maintain the highest vigilance. Let us fight SARS together, and protect ourselves.

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