Khaw Boon Wan down with dengue, netizens wish him well

Singapore — Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan on Thursday (July 23) announced that he had been admitted into an isolation ward after experiencing a fever.

When he announced this, he wrote on his Facebook page: “Unlikely to be COVID but dengue is possible as my area is a hot zone. Did the swab test just now and hopefully it’s a false alarm, I had dengue before and it was not pleasant. Meanwhile I will just let the body rest and think about retirement!”

He wrote that he had finalised “the RTS negotiations and was looking forward to the ceremony” when he fell ill.

According to The Straits Times, Mr Khaw’s office has confirmed that he tested negative for Covid-19, but positive for dengue fever.

Singaporeans have shown their support to Mr Khaw wishing him a speedy recovery, while thanking him for his years of service to the nation.

The rise in dengue cases this year has been a cause of worry for the nation. The country is experiencing its worst dengue outbreak in history this year, with more than 14,000 cases reported so far. The total number of cases is expected to surpass the high of 22,170 reported in 2013, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Thursday (July 2).

There are now 424 active dengue clusters concentrated mostly in the eastern part of the country. 19 people have died from dengue thus far. -/TISG