Yesterday, I received a notification to follow Gov.sg’s official channel on Telegram in order to receive updates about the coronavirus outbreak.
Needless to say, I joined it immediately, and it looks like I’m far from the only one.
Gov.sg Now Has a Telegram Channel & It Has Over 100k Subscribers in 2 Days
Lest you’re unaware, Gov.sg allows you to sign up for Government updates on the coronavirus situation via WhatsApp.
On their website, they describe the chat to be a TL;DR version of Government updates.
On it, they provide:
- COVID-19 updates – eg. case updates, updates on measures, clarifications on rumours and misinformation
- Factually – clarifications on widespread fake news regarding Govt policies
- Key Government announcements – eg. Budget, National Day Rally announcements
All you have to do is sign up and fill in the form here to receive regularly receive updates: go.gov.sg/whatsapp
You’ll be instructed to fill in your name, mobile number, age and language preferences.
Once your sign up is successful, you’ll receive an acknowledgement message.
P.S. If you’ve by any chance signed up for the wrong language or would like to receive notifications in another language, you can always resubmit your preferences at go.gov.sg/whatsapp.
All you have to do is fill in the same form with the number that you signed up with.
On the rare occasion that you haven’t received any message notifications or confirmation after signing up, it might’ve been due to a glitch in their system.
Thus, all you have to do is resubmit the form.
And yes, as long as you have your loved ones’ details, you can also sign up for them on their behalf.
Now Available On Telegram & Twitter
After many weeks, the same service is now available on Telegram (and Twitter).
According to the Ministry of Communications and Information’s (MCI) website, the main aim for this is to keep the public informed about the COVID-19.
These channels will provide the latest information regarding “case updates, clarifications on misinformation and advisories on good hygiene practices and social responsibility.”
To make it as “widely available as possible, MCI will launch the Gov.sg Telegram channel (go.gov.sg/govsg-telegram) and a refresh of the Gov.sg Twitter channel (go.gov.sg/twitter).
Do note that these platforms will collect the same information as the one you’ve been on the Gov.sg WhatsApp group.
Minister for Communications and Information, Mr S Iswaran said: “In a crisis such as COVID-19, it is important to broaden access to information across as many platforms as possible to reach the public with reliable, clear and timely information. We need the public to know what they need to do, respond calmly and do the right thing, as we collectively fight this COVID-19 outbreak.”
Do note that you can also get your hands on articles, videos and resources on how you can protect yourself from the virus on the Gov.sg COVID-19 website here.
Stay safe everyone.