Singapore's PM Lee tests positive for COVID-19

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has tested positive for COVID-19 after recent visits to South Africa and Kenya. 

“I tested positive for COVID-19 for the first time this morning,” Mr Lee said in a Facebook post on Monday (May 22). 

“This comes after my recent work trips. I am generally feeling ok but my doctors have advised me to self-isolate until I am asymptomatic.”

Mr Lee, 71, said doctors have prescribed him the antiviral medication Paxlovid because of his age, adding that his most recent COVID-19 vaccine booster was in November.

“Please continue to keep your vaccinations up-to-date, as it reduces the risk of severe illness,” he wrote. “As COVID-19 remains endemic in Singapore, we must continue to stay safe and healthy.”

Mr Lee made official visits to Cape Town in South Africa from May 14 to 16, and to Nairobi in Kenya from May 17 to 19.

Singapore has been in a COVID-19 wave, which peaked in late April. 

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in parliament on May 9 that fewer seniors are keeping up to date with their COVID-19 shots.

He warned that if the trend of falling vaccinations continues, it could weaken the population’s resilience against COVID-19 over time and make it vulnerable to the virus again.

“The benefits of the COVID-19 vaccines continue to far outweigh the risks, and you should keep your vaccination updated,” he said last month.

“This is the recommendation of both the Expert Committee On COVID-19 Vaccination and the Health Sciences Authority."