Go back in time to April 2020 – more quarantine and isolation services were put in place in dormitories, hotels and even chalets, as Covid-19 in Singapore was on the rise.
It was also around this time that Deputy Deputy Commissioner (DAC) Tan Su Leng began to receive an increasing number of text messages every day.
His paintings focused on security control in quarantine and isolation facilities, immigrant painters’ dormitories, and control measures.
“I would wake up when I was added to many other chat groups,” Tan, who has worked in the Singapore Police Force for 25 years, said in an interview with AsiaOne on Wednesday (Nov 22).
The 52-year-old added that his team of seven officials had to work with many other agencies to implement safe control measures and deal with potential law enforcement issues at supermarkets and migrant residences.
“My constant worry was that I would be the only point of failure, and that put a lot of pressure on me. “
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Tan’s team was already worried about a “public health crisis,” albeit on a much smaller scale.
In May 2019, a 38-year-old Nigerian national, who arrived in Singapore a month ago, tested positive for monkeypox.
Tan said his team is concerned about the management of quarantine operations, which he described as “manageable. “
“We were confident that this experience would prepare us for the next public health crisis,” he added.
But when Covid-19 first emerged in Singapore, Tan’s plans to stop the outbreak were “totally rejected”.
“We had to prepare new plans every day as the scenario evolved at an unprecedented rate,” he said, adding that this time his team was constantly overwhelmed by new data about the pandemic.
That’s why Tan was relieved when Premier Lee Hsien Loong pulled the plug on the circuit in April 2020.
“It’s everything my team and I had anticipated, but I think it’s become very surreal. Like, ‘finally, we’ve reached this milestone. ‘
Tan also recalled how his team spent countless nights rushing to the end to shore up contingency plans, and even missed Chinese New Year celebrations and gatherings.
“[But] the transparent direction of my bosses, as well as the strong teamwork and spirit of resilience within my team, have been very reassuring,” he said.
Tan is one of 3,036 recipients of the Ministry of Home Affairs’ (MHA) Covid-19 medals.
He won the Medal of Public Administration (bronze).
At the award ceremony at the Singapore Expo on Wednesday, November 22, Minister of Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam thanked local team officials for their efforts and sacrifices in helping Singapore triumph over the Covid-19 pandemic.
He noted that many local team managers were on the front lines and running 24 hours a day.
This included functions such as managing the increased demand for emergency medical services, conducting collection operations, and securing quarantine facilities.
Shanmugam also identified the efforts of local team officials who supported the multi-ministerial task force in contact tracing, support operations, and supply of apparatus and logistics.
“All of you and many others have played a role in managing the pandemic and ensuring that we will emerge from it moderately, in fact, more potently than before,” the minister said.
Echoing Shanmugam’s comments, Tan, who is now the operations leader of the SPF’s Ang Mo Kio Division, said he had been waging a “war. “
“And we made it out alive,” he added.
chingshijie@asiaone. com