The decision to forego social distancing at next week’s concert for Mandopop superstar JJ Lin is being called out as a “double-standard” by those who say it’s getting special treatment.
People aired disappointment last night that fans attending the charity concert at Marina Bay Sands would be allowed to sit next to one another while everyone else must still strictly maintain a meter distance at regular daily gatherings and sporting events.
“Nonsense rules. Visit family or dining out must be 2 person or 5 in same household but yet no need social distancing in this concert. Blardy double standard,” a Song Juma wrote on social media.
“And yet: My kids can’t play outdoor sports in groups of more than 2. Suggestion: If tightly-packed concerts are OK, so are a lot of other activities that remained currently banned,” JonahBlank wrote on Twitter.
Terry Dean said the 40-year-old singer would bear some of the responsibility for any potential outbreak:
“The government ban[s] the unvaccinated almost everywhere citing safety and protection and yet this same government allows this to take place. A concert isn’t even a necessity. JJ Lin, whatever happens after this is on you.”
But that was all just sour grapes to those who saw the matter as just the latest thing for Singaporeans to get salty about.
“Omg…the level of sour comments srsly ✋🏻✋🏻✋🏻 Never give u concert u complain, give u concert also complain. [That’s] why Sporeans are never ever contented with life,” a Lorinna Loh wrote.
The change came under new protocols announced Monday under which capacity limits may be relaxed at select events favoring the fully vaccinated. Only fully vaccinated concert-goers were eligible for a ticket lottery.
The two-day concert set for Nov. 27 and 28 was one such event to be exempted from the rules along with recent and current events such as the Milken Institute Asia Summit, Bloomberg New Economy Forum, Industrial Transformation Asia Pacific 2021, and One Championship martial arts event.
Participants will still be subjected to COVID-19 testings prior to the event and the wearing of masks.
Currently, events allow up to 1,000 vaccinated attendees, five if from the same household for dining in, groups of two for fitness activities and social gatherings, and a maximum of two visitors per household daily.
Singapore continues to record a weekly average of more than 2,000 new daily cases. As of Tuesday, 94% of the country had been fully vaccinated. In total, Singapore has recorded 244,815 infections and 619 deaths since the start of the outbreak.
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