Goh Chok Tong says “the virus is sneaky”

Singapore ― Two weeks into Singapore’s rolling out of the Covid-19 booster shots, former Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong receives his.

In a Facebook post on Thursday (Sept 30), Mr Goh shared a photo of him receiving his booster jab and said: “Had my booster shot today”.

Despite this, Mr Goh emphasized: “Still, must follow all the other safety measures against Covid-19 diligently”.

By way of explanation, he then opined: “The virus is sneaky”.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Tuesday (Sept 28) that there are “no concerns” if vaccinated people aged 50 and above take their booster shot “slighter earlier” than six months after their second dose of a messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine, namely those from Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna.

Beginning Oct. 4, residents aged 50 to 59 will be eligible for a third vaccine dose, with the government saying people in their 50s “have a higher risk of underlying comorbidities and hence a risk of severe illness as compared to younger persons.”

In July, sharing a photo of his vaccination, former Emeritus Senior Minister (ESM) Goh Chok Tong urged other senior citizens to be “kia si” and “kia su” like him.

“Kia si” is a Hokkien phrase, meaning to be afraid of death, while “kia su” means ‘fear of losing’.

Encouraging other senior citizens to get vaccinated against Covid-19 as soon as possible, Mr Goh said that a prevention-over-cure approach was what had saved his life. /TISG