The Singapore government upped the ‘Disease Outbreak Response System Condition’ (DORSCON) to level orange and this sparked the rush to empty supermarket shelves in the country and across the border in Johor Bahru.
The selfish act has been condemned by many online.
Deeply disappointed with Singaporeans hoarding supplies and food like there’s no tomorrow. Supermarkets are being cleared out.
— Risqué Rebecca ? (@risquerebecca) February 8, 2020
I see videos of people bragging about their storerooms full of supplies like its doomsday and it makes me sick and ashamed to be Singaporean. pic.twitter.com/V9gnHFNSvt
hoarding masks and med supplies and depriving the sick/healthcare professionals of them, needlessly buying out groceries and leaving nothing for others, mistreating healthcare workers, and singaporeans still have the audacity to say theyre better than prcs ? https://t.co/Hew3RB4YEB
— w潓 ☁️ (@taejinsuga) February 8, 2020
Being featured for this kind of hoarding is a bloody disgrace. To the Singaporeans behaving as such, you're the epitome of self-centeredness and ungraciousness, in a country that's far from being self-sufficient in its resources. https://t.co/tsSDqX2ahS
— Shannon Tan (@shannontanTW) February 8, 2020
Memes have also been popping up online poking fun at the kiasu behaviour.
One of the best memes from Singapore pic.twitter.com/0ByA7Kftoo
— Toon Seri Anthraxxxx (@anthraxxxx) February 8, 2020
Poking fun at themselves
One standout post is from a Singaporean TikToker who poked fun at Singaporeans for panic-buying in supermarkets by showing fully-stocked shelves in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
According to a report by Mothership, Tawfik Daud was seen dancing and twirling to Justin Bieber's "Yummy" while showing off well-stocked shelves filled with instant noodles, rice, and chips.
The captions in the video include "KL so calm", "If not enough, come to KL", and "Don't worry still got stock".
The 12-second video got over 276,000 views with many saying that they loved his humour.Meanwhile in KL.. #singapore pic.twitter.com/h5vO4PVi0r
— Tawfik Daud (@tawfikkdaud) February 8, 2020
We love it too but the underlying message here is... Don't la hoard. Don't la panic buy. Don't be selfish!