Things are improving, we don't have to live in fear: President Halimah

Despite the uncertainty caused by the ongoing pandemic, Singaporeans can be optimistic and should not be paralysed by fear, as things are improving, said President Halimah Yacob in a year-end message yesterday.

She called for people to display resilience so both Singaporeans and the national economy can bounce back, as she outlined some of the challenges the nation faced this year in her four-minute speech uploaded on Facebook.

"I know that many are tired and long for normalcy... But we still face great uncertainty, especially when there's still so much that's unknown about the Omicron variant," she said.

"However, it is not all gloom and doom. Things are improving. We don't have to live in a climate of paralysing fear."

Listing several high points of the year, she said Singaporeans are fortunate that financial resources were managed wisely as the nation drew on past reserves for a number of support measures.

"We did not have to borrow in order to help our people and businesses. In this way, we do not saddle our future generations with a debt burden, the situation faced by many countries," said Madam Halimah.

The Republic has also achieved a high vaccination rate - 87 per cent of the population have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as at yesterday - and the vaccine is now extended to children too, she added. But she warned that the virus will continue to surprise, no matter how much planning and preparation is done.

"No scientist or health expert has yet been able to predict or explain with great certainty what causes the pandemic to increase or decrease globally the way it does," said Madam Halimah.

"We should expect that there will be significant spread of the coronavirus, including new variants, and be prepared to deal with it."

She praised the solidarity of Singaporeans and paid tribute to donors, volunteers and social workers for ramping up efforts to help the needy.

She also thanked those on the front line who have worked selflessly to ensure the healthcare system functions well and transport networks run smoothly.

"As 2021 draws to a close, we can look back with satisfaction on the work done and look to 2022 with optimism," she said.