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SINGAPORE – Congregants can now use the TraceTogether app or token to register at 40 of Singapore’s 71 mosques, with the Singapore Islamic Religious Council (Muis) gearing up for the end of the year, when mandatory TraceTogether registrations will take place in the public places.
TraceTogether records were entered into 24 initial mosques on October 19 and 16 other mosques on October 23.
Muis did not say when TraceTogether registrations will be implemented in the remaining 31 mosques, or when they will be mandatory.
For now, parishioners can still use the older SafeEntry methods of scanning QR codes with a phone camera or SingPass mobile app, or barcodes on the NRICs. But mosque staff have been instructed to encourage parishioners to download the TraceTogether app.
The government announced on October 20 that the use of the TraceTogether app or the token to register would be mandatory in public places such as movie theaters, restaurants, workplaces, schools and shopping centers by the end of December.
One mosque, Masjid Al-Falah on Orchard Road, has even introduced a Green Lane that allows worshipers using the app or token to enter faster.
“Using the app or token accelerates the flow of parishioners into our facilities. Many of our parishioners are actually workers in the area, so time is of the essence for them,” the CEO of Masjid Al-Falah, Khairul Anwar (Oct 30).
“Previously, we only allowed entry by scanning (the bar codes) of the integrated circuits, so that would have taken a bit of time.”
He added that TraceTogether also provides parishioners with greater peace of mind with the “enhanced security” of real-time contact tracing.
About half of the 100 parishioners who attended the first prayer service at noon on Friday were seen using TraceTogether. The vast majority were using the app, and The Straits Times detected only three parishioners with tokens.
Yusope Muntil, 75, was one of them. You picked up your file from the Crawford Community Center about two weeks ago, when tokens were still being distributed at nearly 40 Community Centers (CCs).
“Using the token is better for me because sometimes when I go out, I forget to bring my IC (to scan) and I’m not sure how to use the app,” said the cleaner. “The process (to enter the mosque) was very quick and easy.”
Messenger Azizan Mat Shukor, 35, said he picked up a token at the Cairnhill Community Center three weeks ago, after mosque staff suggested that he do so.
“I use it wherever I go, not just when I go to the mosque. It is much more convenient than using (the app on) my phone because sometimes it can be low on battery or not have a good data connection,” he said.
Token distribution was halted on Wednesday by Smart Nation and Digital Government Group (SNDGG) following reports of long lines at some community centers / clubs (CC) last weekend, and resumed on a limited basis Thursday on Marsiling Community Club.
New collection locations will now be open one constituency at a time through December, and residents can only collect from the CC in the constituency in which they live. The next CC to open for collection is Woodgrove on Saturday.
The SNDGG said Thursday that TraceTogether-only SafeEntry will apply only when everyone who needs a token can collect one at a CC near them.
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