SINGAPORE - On Monday (Aug 29), for the first time in more than two years, Singaporeans were not required to wear a mask indoors - but not everyone was keen to ditch it. 

In shopping malls and schools across Singapore, many people were seen still wearing their masks.

When asked, two reasons stood out.

First, the need to continue taking precautions to safeguard their own health; and second, not wanting to fall ill and endanger the health of close family members.

For instance, real estate agent Kek Siew Sin, 57, said he had no plans to stop wearing a mask when he was indoors.

He said: "I still plan to wear a mask indoors. I cannot afford to get sick as I am a self-employed person." 

Similarly, graphic designer Yong Chong How, 46, was in no hurry to quit wearing a mask.

The Sengkang resident said: "I will still be wearing masks. It is the responsible thing to do to protect family and friends. I will remove mask only when I need to drink or eat."

Last Wednesday, the multi-ministry task force tackling Covid-19 said people will not be required to wear a mask indoors except in healthcare facilities and on public transport.

In March, the requirement to wear a mask outdoors was removed amid the easing of several other Covid-19 safe management rules in Singapore.

When The Straits Times visited Clementi Mall at 10.30am on Monday, about eight in 10 people were seen wearing a mask inside the mall.

Likewise in Sengkang, most shoppers at the Compass One mall were seen wearing their masks, as were patrons queueing up at the Kopitiam Square food centre across the road.

Shoppers with masks on were also in the majority at Waterway Point mall in Punggol.

Still, there were a small number of people at the mall who had opted to embrace the freedom of not wearing a mask.

One of them was business operations manager Erwin Angeles, 45, who said he would mask up indoors without being asked if the Covid-19 situation became worse.

However, his wife Cyl, also 45, was not taking any chances.

She kept her mask on, she said, because she did not want to risk falling ill at a time when her son was taking his PSLE.

Mrs Angeles, a housewife, said: "Eventually, I will give up wearing masks but for now, I feel it is still too soon, so I am not comfortable not wearing one."

Others, like Mr Jerome Ong, who is in his early 40s and works in financial services, said he would be wearing a mask only in areas designated by the Health Ministry.

He said: "I have been counting down to this day in eager anticipation and hopped out of bed this morning with joy. I smell freedom and am certainly loving it."

At Poi Ching School in Tampines, Chinese-language teacher Agnes Teo, 49, welcomed the new rule, saying masks prevented her from seeing whether students were enunciating properly in diction class. 

However, Phoebe Chor, a Primary 5 pupil at the school, said her entire class still wore masks during lessons. 

The 11-year-old said: “Since we have been wearing masks for so long, a lot of us find it a bit awkward to look at each other without a mask on.”  

Pre-school teacher Sarah Rivera, 39, said it will be a big adjustment for her to go without a mask, especially when she is in class.

Her charges at Learning Kidz will need to adjust to seeing her without a mask as well, because she will not wear one during lessons, she added.

Ms Rivera said: "The kids definitely need adjusting too. For example, the infants I take care of have never seen me without a mask.

"So today, when I picked them up, they stared at me a little longer, trying to recognise me."

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in his National Day Rally speech on Aug 21 said children need to be able to see the facial expressions of their teachers and of each other, and that it is crucial for learning and development.

• Additional reporting by Syarafana Shafeeq and Mark Cheong