PEOPLE in vermillion-coloured shirts with the words ‘SAFE DISTANCING AMBASSADOR’ emblazoned on the back, making their rounds in air-conditioned shopping centres, public parks and open-air food courts are a common sight in Singapore these days.
As one of the most unique roles to come out of the COVID-19 pandemic in the city state, safe distancing ambassadors are the people who are tasked with keeping people in Singapore safe by making sure that those outside their homes wear their masks properly, and keep a safe distance from one another.
In pandemic-ravaged Malaysia, safe distancing ambassadors is perhaps the fresh strategy we have been looking for in our fight to keep the virus at bay.
There have been increasing calls of late for the Government to do an overhaul of the existing strategies, seeing as to how most of them are outdated and no longer effective.
With the COVID-19 situation in the country reaching critical levels following a drastic increase in coronavirus cases as of late, something must certainly be done, and fast.
Despite the Government’s announcement of harsher penalties – including hefty fines or jail time – for those who violate the standard operating procedures (SOPs), it is frustrating to see people still openly flouting the rules by not wearing a face mask, or failing to scan their MySejahtera, for instance.
There is no doubt that personnel from law enforcement agencies are doing the best they can to ensure that Malaysians follow SOPs, but they cannot be everywhere at once, and this is why it is a good idea to rope in more people to lend a hand.
In Singapore, these safe distancing ambassadors comprise officers from public agencies as well as those from private sectors whose usual jobs have been disrupted by COVID-19 like cabin crew and tour guides, as well as volunteers.
And by the way, they don’t come cheap either; according to news reports, safe distancing ambassadors are paid up to $2,500 (RM7,819) a month!
So why not get our public servants, along with volunteers from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to play their parts as well?
Sometimes all that people need is a gentle nudge in the right direction or a quick reminder to follow SOPs, and safe distancing ambassadors might just be the thing that we need to flatten the COVID-19 curve once and for all. – May 28, 2021
Photo credit: The Business Times
