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The SkillsFuture Credit
That’s how it should be!
Star
Saturday November 7, 2015 MYT 8:55:16 PM
All Singaporeans above 25 to get RM1,500 education fee credit each
SINGAPORE: Starting next year, Singaporeans will get S$500 (RM1,533) to spend on a range of 10,000 courses to upgrade their skills.
From Jan 1, more than two million Singaporeans aged 25 and above will receive an initial SkillsFuture Credit of S$500.
These can be used to fund government-approved courses in 57 areas, including workplace literacy and numeracy, masters in nursing, or elementary Chinese restaurant cooking.
Acting minister for education Ong Ye Kung announced the start date of the credit on Saturday at the Lifelong Learning Festival.
“SkillsFuture Credit is not meant to be just a monetary grant, but is also a clear signal that each of us is empowered, and need to take charge of our own skills advancement,” he said.
First announced by deputy prime minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam during the Budget in February, the SkillsFuture Credit is meant to support Singaporeans in their pursuit of lifelong learning. Singaporeans will receive a letter in January about their SkillsFuture Credit account activation.
The credit, which does not expire, will be periodically topped up by the Government
http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Regional/2015/11/07/Singaporeans-to-get-s500-each/
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SINGAPORE IS A FINE COUNTRY.
Fined $$19,800 for 34 acts of littering = S$580 approx. for each act.
Man fined record $19,800 for throwing cigarette butts from Compassvale home 34 times http://shar.es/1bdvtZ
…SINGAPORE – A man has been fined $19,800 and sentenced to five hours of Corrective Work Order for committing 34 acts of high-rise littering.
This is the highest fine meted out to date for the offence, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in a statement today.
The 38-year-old offender repeatedly threw cigarette butts out of his home at Block 224C Compassvale Walk between Mar 13 and 16, 2014.
The NEA received five instances of feedback on high-rise littering at the block between June 2013 and June 2014.
“Despite repeated educational rounds conducted by the Town Council and grassroots organisation, including stake-outs by NEA officers, the high-rise littering problem persisted,” the NEA said.
It subsequently deployed a surveillance camera between Nov 14 and 18, 2013 and between Mar 13 and 18, 2014, which caught the offender in the act 34 times. He was found guilty and sentenced on Sep 19, 2014.
– See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/man-fined-record-19800-throwing-cigarette-butts-home-34-times#sthash.C6OcdXhQ.BFBz5Lzc.dpuf
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TEO EN MING: A MAN DESPERATE TO BE NOTICED?
Is this the Teo En Ming who wrote to The Real Singapore?
…
HE HAS WRITTEN TO THE REAL SINGAPORE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT MODELS WHO REFUSED TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED BY HIM!
It looks like he’ll do almost anything to be noticed.
IN 2010, HE HAD WANTED TO SUE GOD, just like Nebraska Democratic State Senator Ernie Chambers. A case of Monkey see, monkey do?
..
slashdot news for nerds
Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming wants to sue God
enmingteo (1909116) writes | more than 3 years ago
enmingteo (1909116) writes “Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Sues God
Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wants to sue God for His utter negligence on earthly affairs. How can I file a lawsuit against Him at the United States Supreme Court, the European Court of Justice, and the International Court of Justice?
Like Nebraska Democratic State Senator Ernie Chambers, I want to seek a permanent injunction against God.
Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
Singapore Identity Card Number: S78*6*2*H
Location: Bedok Reservoir Road, Singapore 470103
Mobile Phone Number (Starhub Pre-paid): +65-8369-2618
Photo of Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) #1: http://i53.tinypic.com/207tamp.jpg
Photo of Singapore Citizen Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) #2: http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/7534/enmingteodscf2511.jpg
http://beta.slashdot.org/submission/1342480/singapore-citizen-mr-teo-en-ming-wants-to-sue-god
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Either he has too much time on his hands, or he has illusions of grandeur:
President Teo En Ming, Federation of the Universe
Nov 27, 2013 – On 2nd October 2013, Teo En Ming is inaugurated as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Government of the Federation of th
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NOW, HE HAS LODGED A POLICE REPORT OVER BEING SNUBBED BY SOME MODELS!
The Real Singapore shared a link.
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Singapore is the happiest place in Asia, but Asia in general isn’t the happiest place in the world
“Singapore is the happiest place in Asia” – Dan Buettner shares the secrets to longevity
By grace@thesmartlocal.com (Grace Yew) | TheSmartLocal.com – Sun, Jul 6, 2014
…
It’s no surprise that Dan Buettner was chosen to give the keynote speech at last month’s launch of upcoming waterfront resort Treasure Bay Bintan. Buettner is an established National Geographic journalist and author who’s done extensive research into “blue zones” – places where residents enjoy greater longevity and better health than anyone else on Earth. In short, he’s the perfect pick to promote a health resort like Treasure Bay.
TSL: What are your opinions on the claim that Singapore is one of the happiest cities on Earth?
Dan Buettner: Singapore is the happiest place in Asia, but Asia in general isn’t the happiest place in the world. I’ve written a lot about blue zones and found evidence-based parts of the world where people are happiest. I looked in Denmark, Mexico, even Singapore. The data here indicated that people here self-report higher levels of happiness than anywhere else in the world.
If you look at Gallup poll results, you’ll realise Singapore is the happiest place. You guys don’t realise how good you have it. Singapore is a place where you can live out your values, where elderly people are taken care of, people feel secure, where there’s order and cleanliness – these are fundamental sources of joy for people and you have them here.
TSL: How do you think working in Singapore affects your health?
Dan Buettner: If you’re working more than 45 hours a week, you’re lowering your life expectancy. You’re not any happier, especially in Singapore, where most basic needs are already taken care of. If you’re making 50, 60 thousand dollars a year, you probably make enough money for optimal, moment-to-moment happiness.
Do the math! The healthiest people sleep 8 hours and socialise 6 hours. So you have 10 hours left for eating, physical activity, and working. 7 hours of work should be about right…though your bosses are gonna kill me.
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/singapore-happiest-place-asia-dan-032400254.html
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WOULDN’T THE MALAYSIAN PRIME MINISTER LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN IN MALAYSIA?
*WRITING AS GRIZZLY BEAR RIDHUAN ABDULLAH, A MAN WROTE A VULGAR REMARK ON LEE HSIEN LOPONG’S FACEBOOK PAGE.
*HE WAS CONSEQUENTLY SACKED BY HIS BOSS.
Read all about it…
— with Yaacob Ibrahim and 6 others.
Man fired after posting vulgar reply to PM’s Facebook post
Man fired after posting vulgar reply to PM’s Facebook post
*THIS WAS THE VULGAR POSTING ON FACEBOOK
Timeline Photos
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YAHOO! NEWS SINGAPORE
No injuries in fire at Downtown Line worksite in Little India
By Jeanette Tan | Yahoo Newsroom –
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Yahoo Newsroom – The scene of a fire at the Downtown Line 2 Little India station contruction site, with large black smoke clouds billowing from it. (Photo courtesy of Twitter user @RajidAhamed)
No one was injured in a fire that broke out at a Downtown Line worksite along Race Course Road on Wednesday night.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) told Yahoo Singapore that a “small fire” had broken out at a “localised area” within the worksite of the Downtown Line Little India MRT station.
“There is also no impact to DTL2 construction progress,” added a spokesperson for the LTA, who added that the fire was put out by 10pm, after it first broke out about half an hour earlier.
News of the fire spread quickly on social media, with images of flames engulfing the area and thick black smoke billowing from it emerging from the scene.
…..
Straits Tmes Breaking News
Fire breaks out at Downtown Line 2 worksite in Little India
12:00 AM
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Top Tweet
Simon Thong male Chinese man: malaysian, singaporean or china? ?attempts suicide jumping off NTU hostel? http://weehingthong.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/singapore-singapore/ …
A spokesperson from SCDF said that the agency received a call about the incident at 2:29pm. They sent an ambulance which then conveyed a conscious 23-year-old Chinese male to the National University Hospital.
Was he a CHINA Chinese male or a SINGAPOREAN Chinese male or a MALAYSIAN Chinese male?
YAHOO! NEWS SINGAPORE
Young man jumps from third floor of NTU residence hall after quarrel with ex-girlfriend
By Elena Torrijos | Yahoo Newsroom
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Yahoo Newsroom – The grassy patch where a young man landed after jumping from the third floor of Block 15 of NTU’s Hall of Residence 1. (Photo courtesy of Nguyen Thanh)
A 23-year-old male jumped from the third floor of a residence hall in Nanyang Technological University on Monday afternoon during a visit to his ex-girlfriend.
He landed on a grassy patch and was later taken away alive to hospital in an ambulance.
Nguyen Thanh, a student at the scene, told Yahoo Singapore that he was in his room at the first floor of Block 15 of NTU’s Residence of Hall 1 when he heard a shout at about 2:30pm.
“I was in my room studying. I was about to take a nap when I heard a male shout out very loud and I heard a crashing sound. I didn’t know what it was then I heard a female crying and I opened the door. I saw him [the man] lying on the ground and his ex-girlfriend and another person, the cleaner of the hostel, sitting next to him,” said the 23-year-old student.
.
The ex-girlfriend was asking the man who jumped “Why did you do that?” and “What happened?”, said Thanh, who is an acquaintance of the girl.
Thanh said the man, who appeared to be in his early 20s, could only mumble in pain and did not respond.
A friend of Thanh called the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and an ambulance came 10 minutes later.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/young-man-jumps-from-third-floor-of-ntu-residence-hall-085104156.html
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DEATH IN ANOTHER COUNTRY!
YAHOO! NEWS SINGAPORE
Two condo security officers die in Marina Bay Suites fire
By Jeanette Tan | Yahoo Newsroom
Yahoo Newsroom – A screengrab of the location of the 66-storey Marina Bay Suites condominium, where a fire broke out on the 65th floor on Monday night. (Screengrab from Marina Bay Suites website)
The two victims whose bodies were discovered at the scene of the Marina Bay Suites fire have been identified as Sim Lai Huat, 58, a Singaporean, and Sooria Kala Kanaseon, 34, a Malaysian, the police said.
They were working as condominium security officers and their charred bodies were discovered at about 2am, according to the police.
According to the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and police, calls for help came in at 10:11pm, and SCDF responders found “heavy smoke and intense heat” filling several upper floors of the 66-storey building.
The two bodies were found inside the opening of the service lift on the 65th floor, said the SCDF. The lift lobby at that level was fully engulfed in flames and the fire involved “contents believed to be renovation materials”, SCDF added. The spokesperson also noted that the fire was confined to the service corridor and lift area.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/two-die-in-marina-bay-suites-fire-023612483.html
…
Star
Tuesday January 14, 2014 MYT 4:06:12 PM
Malaysian woman dies in fire at Singapore’s Marina Bay suites
SINGAPORE: A Malaysian woman was one of two people who died in a fire at the Marina Bay suites here Monday night, according to police.
The Straits Times newspaper quoted police as saying that Sooria Kala Kanaseon, 34, and a male Singaporean, Sim Lai Huat, were security officers at the condominium.
The fire occurred just after 10pm on the 65th floor of the 221-unit condominium that is still mostly unoccupied.
http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/01/14/Marina-Bay-suites-fire-Malaysian-killed/
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THE ‘MCLIZARD’ BURGER: THE TALE OF THE LIZARD’S TALE
THE LIZARD’S TAIL THAT WAS NOT!
It looks like a lizard’s tail! Yes, I had no doubt.Take a look at the photo and you’ll agree that it IS A LIZARD’S TAIL, no doubt about it.
Tail of baby lizard found in Sausage Mcmuffin. (Facebook grab)
Well, we are all so wrong!
YAHOO! NEWS Singapore
Sausage McMuffin ‘lizard tail’ was actually a chicken blood vein: McDonald’s
By Nurul Azliah Aripin | What’s buzzing? – Wed, Sep 4, 2013
The mystery appendage that shocked a customer who bit into a McDonald’s Sausage McMuffin is not a lizard, but a chicken blood vein, preliminary laboratory tests have found.
In a statement issued on Friday, senior communications manager Kevin Lim said the sample its staff collected from Facebook user Sandy Sand’s home on Wednesday was found to be “100% chicken”.
“The vein is white in colour because of the Halal slaughtering process where blood had to be drained,” he explained. “It is commonly found in chicken meat products and is safe to consume.”
Lim added that the McDonald’s lab report has been shared with the appropriate authorities.
…
Earlier on Wednesday, the female customer discovered what she thought was the tail of a baby lizard sticking out of her Sausage McMuffin, after buying the burger from the Ang Mo Kio drive-through branch.
Sandy posted the photo on the fast food restaurant’s Facebook page at noon, leaving a Facebook post that said, “How gross is tat! (sic)? How r u going to answer for tis! (sic)??”
Netizens were quick to label the shock discovery as the “McLizard” burger.
Local parody site SGAG’s meme of the half-eaten burger (shown below) is also going viral.
Local parody site SGAG’s McLizard meme goes viral (Courtesy of SGAG)
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WOW! Punished for cutting his nails while driving!
We have all experienced bus drivers who terrified us with their antics while driving. Some time back, the driver of an express bus kept reading and sending text messages on his hand phone while driving at 120kph. A man went to tell him off but the driver ignored him, so I went up to the front and told the driver that he was putting our lives at risk. Confronted by the two of us, he stopped.
However, he began speaking over his hand phone! I have never taken that particular company’s express bus again.
…
Star
Friday August 16, 2013 MYT 10:24:13 AM
Nail-clipping driver busted
A BUS driver in Singapore was subjected to disciplinary action after he was found clipping his fingernails while driving the bus, Sin Chew Daily reported.
The irresponsible act was captured by a passenger who uploaded the video on the Internet.
The video showed the driver of the SMRT bus driving along the highway towards Woodlands.
While driving, he suddenly looked at his fingernails, then took out a nail clipper with his right hand and spent some 20 seconds clipping his fingernails.
The video was shared over 700 times and netizens blasted the driver for his rash act that could have caused a road accident.
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This year’s Hair for Hope took place on 27 and 28 July at Vivo City.
Singaporeans slam St Margaret Secondary School principal for imposing wig rule on bald students
By Nurul Azliah Aripin | Yahoo! Newsroom – 7 hours ago
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Yahoo! Newsroom/Hair for Hope Facebook photo – A lady posing beside a Hair for Hope banner with her shaved head. (Hair for Hope Facebook photo)
Singaporeans, including personalities such as local radio DJ Rosalyn Lee, have slammed the principal of St Margaret Secondary School for insisting that her students wear wigs to school after having their heads shaved at a fundraising event.
The Straits Times reported Friday that five students from the all-girls school had participated in the Hair for Hope, which was organised by the Children’s Cancer Foundation (CCF).
The event which saw “overwhelming” response from supporters as said in its Facebook post, encouraged supporters to shave their heads as a gesture to tell children with cancer that it is “OK to be bald”.
The students had asked for the school’s permission beforehand due to a rule that forbids “punk, unfeminine or sloppy hairstyles” – which in this case, refer to the bald heads.
The report also said that the five secondary 3 students had “promised” to put on wigs when they return to school. However, only two of them had done so while the remaining three did not.
Tan reportedly called the remaining three out of their class and insisted that they buy the wigs, which costs $70 each, to cover their bald heads.
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YOUR VIEW: Why are girls who shave their heads to raise funds being punished for their good intentions?
Yahoo! Newsroom – 7 hours ago
I recognize and respect that education institutes such as St Margaret’s Secondary School will naturally have rules set in place that foster the right values and etiquette in both teenage boys and girls alike. What I found appalling was St Margaret’s Secondary School’s principal, Mrs Marion Tan’s, utter lack of context and compassion for the 3 girls who shaved their heads to raise funds for the Child’s Cancer Foundation.
These girls did not shave their heads to make a fashion statement. At an age where these girls are possibly the most physically insecure, they chose to make a societal statement on behalf of children with cancer – that it is perfectly fine to be bald.
Tell me that action is not the grace and bravery of a woman?
…
These young girls clearly lived up to the school’s value of showing care so what I cannot understand is, which part of the school’s values talks about the “turnout as a young lady” because she gave her hair up to promote acceptance and empathy.
Separately, I believe it is imperative that an influential personality in today’s Youth should always keep herself up to date to what makes etiquette in a modern woman. There is no point in education if a woman’s rights to her own appearance for the greater good are governed by that of another person’s opinion – male or female.
Pat Law
Digital Strategist
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A hint of a nascent ethclass?
“People from similar class backgrounds share similar values and lifestyles, and cross-racial friendship becomes a lot more possible,” Dr Mathews said.
Star
Sunday July 21, 2013 MYT 8:09:56 AM
Successful youth more likely to have close friends from another race
SINGAPOREANS who are younger, better educated, have higher incomes and live in a more expensive house are more likely to have a close friend from another race.
The findings, from an Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) and OnePeople.sg survey released on Thursday, goes against some commonly held perceptions that older folk and those living in Housing Board flats, have deeper relationships with those from other communities.
Tertiary schools and cosmopolitan workplaces may give the young more opportunities to build such friendships, said Dr Mathew Mathews, the study’s principal investigator.
Education and working together tend to “open people’s world view and help people become more apt at dealing with diversity”, said the IPS research fellow.
Race differences may also become less salient as people become better off, he added, as their values and aspirations tend to be more similar to one another’s.
…
The strength of interracial ties was also greater the higher up the socioeconomic ladder a respondent was, the study found.
“People from similar class backgrounds share similar values and lifestyles, and cross-racial friendship becomes a lot more possible,” Dr Mathews said.
“The higher you move up the socioeconomic ladder towards the middle class and beyond, the more people’s values become similar. There’s more likelihood of you finding affinity and closeness with others with similar values, regardless of race.”
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Female injured in fire at Singapore Polytechnic
Yahoo! Newsroom – Thu, Jul 18, 2013
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Yahoo! Newsroom – A fire broke out at Singapore Polytechnic on 18 July, the second one this week. (Photo by Nurul Syahidah)
[UPDATED on 19 July 2pm: adding details from SCDF and SP]
A female was injured after a fire broke out at stall 7 of Singapore Polytechnic’s (SP) food court 3 on Thursday evening.
A spokesperson for the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said the food stall assistant suffered burns on the right side of her face and her right arm.
She was sent to the Singapore General Hospital and was alert and conscious on the way there, he added.
…
Shah Salimat, a 21-year-old full-time national serviceman who was at the scene, told Yahoo! Singapore he heard a loud explosion at around 7:15pm.
He later saw a fire blazing at the Malay food stall.
There were around 80 people at the food court at the time, he added, and people started leaving after the explosion occurred.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/another-fire-breaks-out-at-singapore-polytechnic-122433024.htm
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This is the second fire in the week…
Published on Jul 16, 2013
SINGAPORE: A fire broke out at the Singapore Polytechnic on Tuesday evening.
According to Singapore Poly, the fire started at 7.25pm at the staff office at Teaching Block 2, Level 5.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it received a call at 7.35pm informing it of a fire at the polytechnic.
Two fire engines, two red rhinos, three support vehicles and two fire bikes were sent to the campus.
SCDF said the fire involved contents of an office, and was extinguished at 8.30pm using two water jets.
There were no reported injuries and investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing.
The polytechnic said all staff were accounted for.
“Classes will not be affected by the incident and will continue as scheduled tomorrow at different locations,” it added.
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My CARFORUM
宏茂桥一名妇女，一丝不挂搭巴士，吓坏一车乘客，惊动警方到场将妇女逮捕。《新明日报》热心读者杨小姐（30岁，活动策划员），这名妇女今早9时25分左 右在宏茂桥4道第641座组屋的巴士站上了一辆新捷运76号巴士。杨小姐说，妇女当时一丝不挂，面无表情，而且上下车时还不忘扫描易通卡。
完整报道，请翻阅15.07.2013《新明日报》。
http://www.mycarforum.com/index.php?showtopic=2689849
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Malaysia Chronicle
Tuesday, 16 July 2013 17:34
Naked woman boards bus in Ang Mo Kio
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STOMPer Aziman said this man stripped naked in front of a woman and her two kids at East Coast Park on Monday (July 1).
When the STOMPer asked the man why he did so, the man simply replied that he wanted to go for a swim.
The STOMPer said:
“This man stripped naked in front of an American woman and her two kids at East Coast Park on Monday (July 1).
“I approached the woman as I saw her frantically calling the police for help.
“She put down the phone before she could make a report, and explained the situation to me.
“When I asked the man why he took off his clothes, he simply said that he wanted to have a swim.
“I told him that it was illegal in Singapore to do so in public, and I told the woman to lodge a police report.
“When he heard this, he argued with me and asked me to let him go. I tried holding him down, but he left on his bike.
“I tried chasing him down after that, but it was too late.”
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Published on Feb 27, 2013
A naked man has been seen lying at Jalan Sultan, Singapore. The first portion video is blurred.
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Published on Jun 28, 2012
Was having my dinner nearby at Sultan Kitchen , when I noticed a commotion of people gathering , taken by surprise I got up and took a glance and to my surprise found a naked man positioning himself on the right lane of Jalan Sultan , possibly a mental case as he was seen smiling !!grins !!
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Costly to shop in S’pore? Prices compared with other countries
inSing.com – 12 February 2013 1:12 AM
Singapore may be billed as the sixth most expensive city to live in worldwide, but when it comes to eggs, it may still be able to say it has the cheapest compared to Japan and Australia.
Singapore was ranked sixth in the Worldwide Cost of Living 2013 report by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), which compares the cost of living for 131 cities around the world using New York as a base city.
…………….
To take an informal, small-scale look at the prices of food and household products in some of the most expensive places in the world, inSing News decided to browse at some online supermarkets.
Products found in every country such as eggs, Kleenex tissues and Coca Cola were picked, and prices converted to Singapore dollars.
The results were surprising.
Blogger: Malaysian prices?
12 Omega eggs: Rm5.00 (approx Sgd2.00)
12 cans of Coca Cola: Rm19.20 (approx Sgd7.95)
1 box tissue: Rm2.50? (approx Sgd1.05)
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S’pore’s ruling party loses Punggol East seat in by-election
by AFP
inSing.com – 26 January 2013 11:46 PM | Updated 27 January 2013 12:36 AM
Workers’ Party’s Lee Li Lian makes a historic win at Punggol East, becoming the first female opposition candidate to win a single-seat ward since 1965. She had 16,038 votes, 3,182 votes more than her closest rival, People’s Action Party’s Koh Poh Koon, who garnered 12,856 votes (Photo: Lim Weixiang) (SINGAPORE) Singapore’s ruling party suffered a fresh rebuke from voters on Saturday when it lost a parliamentary by-election despite promises of more reforms to appease a restive electorate.
The opposition Workers’ Party trounced the People’s Action Party (PAP), which has been in power for more than 50 years, following a campaign dominated by issues such as the rising cost of living and widening income gaps.
Workers’ Party candidate Lee Li Lian, 34, a middle-class corporate trainer, comfortably beat PAP candidate Koh Poh Koon, 40, a prominent surgeon who was strongly backed by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
“The PAP will continue to work to improve the lives of Singaporeans, and present our report card for voters to judge in the next general elections,” Lee said in a statement after the results were announced.
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SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore‘s long-dominant People’s Action Party (PAP) lost heavily in a single-seat by-election on Saturday, a barometer of how the government is dealing with discontent in the wealthy Asian country over immigration and the high cost of living. The result in the Punggol East ward – 54.5 percent of the vote for the Workers Party and 43.7 percent for the PAP, with the rest …
Reuters via Yahoo! News – 12 minutes ago
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Singapore’s opposition extended its record presence in Parliament after winning a by-election, as Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s ruling party lost support even as his government steps up efforts to help citizens.
Bloomberg – 47 minutes ago
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SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Sky-high housing prices. Train breakdowns. Foreigners stealing jobs, and a widening chasm between rich and poor. A by-election in Singapore on Saturday is putting a spotlight on strains and discontent in one of Asia’s wealthiest countries and biggest success stories: the transformation of a post-colonial backwater into an economic powerhouse. The dominant People’s Action …Reuters via Yahoo! News – Jan 25 01:00am
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Singapore’s Workers’ Party candidate Lee Li Lian won a parliamentary seat after defeating three others in an unexpected loss for Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s ruling party.
Bloomberg – 1 hour, 32 minutes ago
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Malaysiakini
| 11:16PM Jan 26, 2013 |
Opposition Workers’ Party has scored a stunning victory in Singapore’s Punggol East by-election, a seat considered a stronghold of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP).
Workers’ Party candidate Lee Li Lian, 34, a middle-class corporate trainer, took almost 54 percent of the votes cast over PAP candidate Koh Poh Hoon’s 43 percent in a four-cornered contest.
Returning officer Yam Ah Mee announced that Lee had taken a total of 16,038 votes, while Koh, 40, a prominent surgeon, bagged 12,856 votes.
Meanwhile, two other opposition parties candidates – Singapore Democratic Alliance’s Desmond Lim (168 votes) and and Reform Party chief Kenneth Jeyaretnam (353 votes) both forfeited their election deposit.
Lee (left in photo) makes history as the second elected female oppostion MP in post- independence Singapore, and first in single-seat ward.
PAP, which has been in power for more than 50 years, was trounced by the opposition party following a campaign dominated by issues such as the rising cost of living and widening income gaps.
The Punggol East by-election is the second PAP defeat since the May 2011 general elections when the ruling party’s share of popular votes fell to an all-time low of 60 percent.
PAP was earlier rebuffed by voters at a by-election last May in the opposition stronghold of Hougang.
However, it still controls 80 of the 87 seats in Parliament, where most seats are elected in clusters. All the seven opposition seats are held by Workers’ Party.
Workers’ Party pulls off upset win in S’pore by-election
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BEST PLACE TO BE BORN IN, IN 2013 according to an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) index of 80 nations.
Malaysian Insider
Singapore 6th, Malaysia 36th best nation to be born in 2013, survey shows
Assistant News Editor
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 3 — Singapore jumped to the sixth best place to be born in the world this year while Malaysia was 36th, according to an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) index of 80 nations that attempts to measure which country provides the best opportunities for a healthy, safe and prosperous life.
Southeast Asia’s third biggest economy hopped up two rungs from the 38th spot it occupied 25 years ago, when the EIU —- a sister company to the influential Economist business and current affairs magazine — first ran its “Where-to-be-born” index in 1988, edging out other nations in the region except for Singapore.
A quarter century later, the Lion City has shot to 6th place, up from 36th out of 48 countries in 1988 when it tied with East Germany before the Berlin Wall crumbled.
Thailand ranked 50, the Philippines which placed 24th in 1988 dropped to 63, tying with Sri Lanka, while Vietnam and Indonesia took 68th and 71st positions respectively.
Malaysia drew 6.62 out of a 10-point scorecard in the study of life-satisfaction survey, which seeks to quantify how happy people say they are based on a list of 11 economic and socio-political indicators such as a country’s income per capita, cost of living, human rights, life expectancy and literacy and education levels.
The table
Singapore 6th, Malaysia 36th best nation to be born in 2013, survey shows
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A 2001 study using prices of 119 IKEA products across 25 countries – including Singapore – concluded that price differentials were not due to differences in exchange rates, local costs, tariffs or taxes, but were largely due to differences in mark-ups as a result of strategic pricing across countries, said the MAS tender document.
Why some things are more expensive in S’pore
By Neo Chai Chin, TODAY | Posted: 19 November 2012 0649 hrs
SINGAPORE: If you have always wondered why that chair from IKEA or that pair of jeans from Gap is priced higher in Singapore than some other countries, you are not alone. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) seems just as keen to find out.
Calling a tender to conduct a consumer products price comparison study earlier this month, the MAS said: “Despite these goods being exactly the same in many instances, the law of one price does not appear to hold. Anecdotal evidence suggests that prices of IKEA products and mid-range apparel, including Gap and Abercrombie & Fitch, are higher in Singapore compared to many other countries.”
Some factors that could explain the price differentials include productivity and wage differences across countries, variation in non-tradable costs like rental and taxes, transport costs and price stickiness when it comes to exchange rate fluctuations, the MAS stated in its tender document.
The study’s aim is to identify which factors, and their significance.
Using case studies of an international mid-range clothing retailer, a consumer electronics retailer and possibly furniture giant IKEA, the MAS also wants to identify the extent of price differentials of the same products between Singapore and at least 10 other countries, the document stated.
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Previous research on price differentials has been conducted.
A 2001 study using prices of 119 IKEA products across 25 countries – including Singapore – concluded that price differentials were not due to differences in exchange rates, local costs, tariffs or taxes, but were largely due to differences in mark-ups as a result of strategic pricing across countries, said the MAS tender document.
The tender closes on November 27.
– TODAY
Why some things are more expensive in S’pore
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Watch the video:
Foul-mouth foreigner hurls abuse and zinc sheet at workers
YAHOO! NEWS
Senior Barclays banker in S’pore fired after expletive-laced rant
By Jeanette Tan | What’s buzzing? – 10 hours ago
A senior banker based in the Singapore branch of Barclays bank was dismissed after being caught raging against a group of construction workers in Singapore.
According to the Wall Street Journal and Huffington Post, former head of foreign exchange strategy for the Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) Olivier Desbarres was fired after a video clip of his tirade emerged online and was shown to Barclays executives.
In the one-minute video clip that emerged two weeks ago, the Frenchman, who joined Barclays in August last year, goes berserk and threatens a group of unseen workers at a construction site, calling them “animals, Chinese f**king animals”.
Dressed casually in a polo shirt and sandals, he rages, “”I’m going to go after you. I’m going to burn your f**king house down with your f**king people in it.”
“I will find your f**king family. I can find it very easily, I am a man with resources,” he added, before picking up and throwing a nearby sheet of metal into a pit.
Upon realizing he is also being filmed, he shouts, “You’re filming me? You think that’s good? Put your f**king phone down because I’m going to wait for you to come out and take that phone and shove it up your f**king ass”.
Senior Barclays banker in S’pore fired after expletive-laced rant
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Watch the video:
Foul-mouth foreigner hurls abuse and zinc sheet at workers
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Authorities said the move is an effort towards building a more gracious society in Singapore.
Dirty dishes left on the tables are a common sight at food centres all over the country.
Push for tray return to start at 9 food centres
ChannelNewsasia.com – 3 November 2012 12:51 PM | Updated 7:43 PM
Push for tray return to start at 9 food…SINGAPORE: A renewed push to get patrons to clear their own trays will kick off with a first batch of nine hawker centres from this month.
The hawker centre at Block 726 Clementi West Street 2 will be the first to start the tray return initiative on 11 November.
The other food centres — North Bridge Road Food Centre, Zion Riverside Food Centre, Tiong Bahru Market, Kallang Estate Food Centre, Block 137 Tampines Street 24, Block 628 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4, Block 16 Bedok South, and Block 254 Jurong East Street 24 — will follow over the next three months.
Push for tray return to start at 9 food centres
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SINGAPORE – Good news for feline lovers in Chong Pang. From today, residents in the area’s 123 blocks are allowed to own one cat per flat under the “Love Cats” programme.
The programme was launched on Saturday by the area’s MP, Mr K Shanmugam, who is also the Law and Foreign Affairs Minister.
Chong Pang residents who currently have a cat and wish to keep it must register with the Cat Welfare Society by January. The programme is part of a two-year pilot on cat ownership organised by the Cat Welfare Society.
CHANNEL NEWSASIA
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Lizard seen eating dead body found at Pulau Ubin
By Deborah Choo | Yahoo! Newsroom – Fri, Sep 21, 2012
A metre-long monitor lizard feeding off the corpse, according to an eyewitness who spoke to a local Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao. (Getty Images)
What was meant to be a simple day out catching crabs ended in a grisly discovery for a group of friends out at Pulau Ubin on Wednesday.
According to local Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao, they first noticed a decomposed body lying on the rocks at the water’s edge about noon.
After calling the police, an eyewitness was leading the cops to the dead body when to his horror, he spotted a metre-long monitor lizard feeding off the corpse.
The dead man was described to be in his 50s or 60s, and wore a white shirt with shorts.
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Lizard seen eating dead body found at Pulau Ubin Yahoo! Newsroom – Fri, Sep 21, 2012
Is the body that of the man who went missing from a Boat earlier?
Man who fell off boat to Pulau Ubin is still missing
man missing from a Pulau Ubin-bound boat.
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MAORI HAKA ON ORCHARD ROAD, SINGAPORE!
HOWEVER, THE SINGAPORE POLICE ARE NOT AMUSED….
Watch the video
Fern & Kiwi Orchard Road Haka
Published on Sep 9, 2012 by FernAndKiwi
A haka? On Orchard Rd? New Clarke Quay bar and eatery surprised Orchard Rd shoppers with a haka on Sunday September 2.
Fern & Kiwi, an offshoot of New Zealand restaurant chain Lonestar, brings NZ food, wine, beer, service, live rugby screenings and culture to Singapore.
http://www.facebook.com/FernandKiwi
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NZ restaurant in hot soup over Orchard Rd publicity stunt
By Jeanette Tan | Singapore Showbiz – Wed, Sep 19, 2012 4:46 AM SGT
A police investigation — not the best sort of welcome a new business might hope for — is what the owners of New Zealand restaurant Fern & Kiwi are facing shortly after opening in Singapore earlier this month.
Three days before its official debut here on 5 September, staff from Fern & Kiwi’s first Singapore outlet staged a flash-mob style “Haka” dance — the traditional Maori ancestral war cry and dance made popular by the Kiwi All Blacks rugby team — on Orchard Road.
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Malaysian Insider
My mission was to establish a clean government — Lee Kuan Yew
SEPT 19 — In a region where corruption is endemic, Singapore has remained clean. From 1959 when the PAP first formed the government, we have stamped out corruption. The challenge is to keep corruption free. We have to rid our society of greed, corruption and decadence. When I became Prime Minister in 1959, my mission was to establish a clean and efficient Government against the backdrop of a corruption-ridden region…..The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), which was under my care, has succeeded in keeping the country clean.
The CPIB was established by the British in 1952 to tackle the increasing corruption…..When I took over in 1959, I strengthened the laws and the organisation of CPIB.
We tightened the law on corruption. Wealth disproportionate to a person’s earnings would serve as corroborative evidence when a person is charged for corruption. The CPIB was placed directly under the Prime Minister. And if the Prime Minister were to refuse giving his consent for the CPIB to make any inquiries or to carry out any investigations into any person including the Prime Minister himself, the Director CPIB can seek the concurrence of the President to carry on with the investigations. In other words, nobody is exempt.
Over the years, Singapore has established an effective anti-corruption framework. Leaders must be above suspicion…….
My mission was to establish a clean government — Lee Kuan Yew
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The ugly Singaporean parent: pushy, unreasonable, self-entitled
By Jeffrey Oon | Yahoo! Newsroom – Mon, Sep 17, 2012
COMMENT
You’ve heard of the ugly Singaporean. Now meet its cousin — the ugly Singaporean parent.
Demanding, unreasonable and self-righteous, this new breed of parents have an overbearing sense of entitlement.
They expect nothing less than the best triple A-care for their child in school, and woe befall any teacher that doesn’t match up.
Often displaying a warped sense of what is wrong and right, these pushy parents come down hard on any educator who dares mess with their kid, even if the latter is wrong.
Want to know more? Click on the link below…
The ugly Singaporean parent: pushy, unreasonable, self-entitled
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Saturday May 17, 2008 The ugly Singaporean INSIGHT DOWN SOUTH By SEAH CHIANG NEE
thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?file=/2008/5/17/… – Cached
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Seah Chiang Nee wrote an article on The Ugly Singapore in his Malaysia Star column. This article is interesting but it lacks an explanation of the …
singaporemind.blogspot.com/2008/05/…ugly–singaporean.html – Cached
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Restaurant chain Sakae Sushi says it has received about 300 enquiries into and applications for its open dishwasher position, which will carry a $3,000 monthly salary.
Blogger’s summary
THE JOB AND ITS REQUIREMENTS
Company branding and communications manager Gregg Lewis, “It’s a physically daunting task, (which involves) standing all day, (and there are) very little, if any, career advancement opportunities.”
The $3,000 figure refers to the salary before CPF deductions.
Other benefits not mentioned.
A six-day work week, from 10:30am to 10:30pm, which includes breaks and meal times.
Age, fitness level or mental ability will be considered.
Only Singaporeans or permanent residents.
The company has faced difficulty retaining their dishwashers, citing issues with inconsistent attendance, with some frequently calling in sick.
About 300 enquire into $3k dishwasher post
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Letter to Singapore: Yahoo! readers respond
Yahoo! Newsroom – Tue, Sep 11, 2012
Cordelia Melanie Alfred, 23, Staff Nurse:
Dear Singapore,
You know as well as I do that ours is a love-hate relationship. I loved you more when I was younger, when we were both younger, naive and innocent. We thought the world was our oyster and that we would go at it together. I thought it the highest honour when I was part of the Guard-of-Honour at my secondary school parade on your birthday. I was proud to stand at the front of the contingent, donning my Girls’ Brigade uniform, singing the National Day of that year, which I had memorised.
There are so many things I love about you. I love that when I wake up early in the morning, I can rush down during the breakfast hours and get economy bee hoon. I love that the familiar face of the optician that sold me my first pair of spectacles at the age of 7 (I was his biggest customer; going back every 2 months for a new pair). I even the loved the grumpy old man who sold my friends and I our air-batu after school for 6 years. The highlight of my Christmases was knocking on my neighbours’ doors and sharing the kueh my mother had made (ordered).
Read the rest in
Letter to Singapore: Yahoo! readers respond Yahoo! Newsroom – Tue, Sep 11, 2012Yahoo! Singapore received more than 45 emails in response to our call for readers to write their own “Letter to Singapore”. Here we present some of those that stood … More »———————————————————————————————————-THIS IS THE LETTER THAT STARTED IT ALL…..
Letter to Singapore
Dear Singapore,
I’m sorry, but I’m leaving you. I’ve fallen in love with somewhere else, and you wouldn’t like her. But London is the place for me. I’ve fallen for her dingy, narrow streets. The 24-hour bagels on Brick Lane; the club kids in neon and glitter falling out of Boombox at 3 in the morning; the bands with their urgent, clashing guitars, cigarettes and floppy hair. I’ve fallen for boys who play in bands with a copy of The Female Eunuch in their bedrooms; I’ve fallen for girls who write poetry and play guitar in Leicester Square pubs. I’ve fallen for the Chinese boy I saw at Kings Cross holding hands with his boyfriend, while his mother smiled and hailed a taxi for them all. I’ve fallen in love with the Irish. I’ve fallen in love with the Welsh. They’re all here, Singapore, in tiny corners, in crammed spaces, in underground dancehalls and abandoned warehouses.
We had a good run, but I was never really comfortable with you. You were always liberal when it suited you, small-minded when it didn’t. You used to say, “Careful you don’t be so open-minded, otherwise your brains fall out”. But maybe some fresh air would be good for your head. You were always scared of my clothes, the way I spoke, what I wanted to do. “So smart, is it?” you used to say. “Have some common sense. Later in life, what matters is money. Sad but true. You have to think ahead.”
I’m 20 years old and I don’t want to be jaded, but you’re already feeding me defeatism and banality as a lifestyle choice. I want to be more than an office drone….
I’m in love, of course I take a romantic view of London. But I’ve seen the dark alleys; I’ve seen the feral children with their knives and guns; I’ve been mugged and it wasn’t fun. I almost had to get stitches. I met a drag queen at A&E who’d been gaybashed on night bus number 54. We looked at each other in recognition, and she smiled grimly and said, “Honey, I’ve always wanted a nose job on the NHS.”
In London, I can be a saint or a sinner…..
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But I’m not trying to make you something you’re not, I’m really not. I’m just trying to make you see that you’re more than dollar signs…..You like to hold on to this idea of you being this clean, perfectly efficiently city, when really it’s the dirt that makes you who you are.
And at this point in my life, I don’t want to deal with this amount of self-loathing and deception……
(Plus, I don’t want to be with somebody who says “well, you just don’t understand – this is for our SURVIVAL” should anybody dare to disagree. You’re more than surviving. You’ve done well. But now you need to stop holding your breath, stop acting like everything can be taken away from you in an instant. This kind of warlike paranoia isn’t doing you favours. You could be so great if you just relaxed and let go, just a little.)
I want truth, beauty… you know the rest. I’m twenty and the world’s an open book to me, but you… I’m afraid that maybe, just maybe, you’re a closed case.
I love you, but I can’t do this anymore.
xxxxxxxxxxxx
Read the letter here: Letter to Singapore
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Letter about leaving S’pore strikes chord with readers
By Melissa Aw | Yahoo! Newsroom – Fri, Sep 7, 2012
“Dear Singapore, I’m sorry, but I’m leaving you. I’ve fallen in love with somewhere else, and you wouldn’t like her,” wrote a contributor to a Singapore website.
In an undated post on stories.sg titled “Letter to Singapore”, author Zing then waxed nostalgic for London’s raw underground culture and juxtaposed it against the “jaded” feeling he (or she) felt for Singapore while growing up.
“I’m 20 years old and I don’t want to be jaded, but you’re already feeding me defeatism and banality as a lifestyle choice,” the writer observed, adding that the office drone and money-chasing lifestyle that most Singaporeans led felt trivial to him/her.
“I looked into your dreams one night and they were full of dollar signs. They were full of people getting by on their Mercedes, their two maids, their country club membership. Getting by and not living. Getting but not achieving. Buying and selling but not giving,” the contributor added.
Zing also wrote of the freedom one could feel in London.
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Nonetheless, the author stressed that he/she doesn’t want to “make [Singapore] something you’re not… I’m just trying to make you see that you’re more than dollar signs.”
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By Friday afternoon, after the article was reposted on 2 September on another local blog called “You don’t have to agree”, the letter attracted over 130 comments on the site.
Wrote Aussiefied, “It takes a Singaporean who has been overseas for a substantial period of time immersed in a different culture to see where you’re coming from. Well written, I share many of your thoughts. Singapore does not owe me a living, do I owe her one?”
Another commenter Citutt wrote, “I do feel for [the writer]. I love my country but not the way [it’s being] run. We are born just to chase for that dollar sign and it’s a non-stop process till we are 7ft underneath. Unfortunately age is not on my side. I just have to stay put here, chasing for that dollar sign to survive in this competitive country.”
However, on the other end of the spectrum, several others disagreed with Zing and aggressively defended their motherland.
Find out more:
sg.news.yahoo.com/letter–about–leaving–s’pore–strikes… – Cached
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Employers’ No.1 reason for hiring foreigners is job flexibility: survey
By Deborah Choo | Yahoo! Newsroom – 6 hours ago
Yahoo! Newsroom – A JobStreet.com survey released on Tuesday revealed that Singaporean employers prefer foreigners mainly because of their flexibility to take up jobs that locals avoid, and not so much because they are cheaper to hire. (Screengrab of JobStreet.com survey report)
Employers’ No.1 reason for hiring foreigners is job flexibility: survey
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Cost not main reason for hiring non-Singaporeans: survey
Posted: 04 September 2012 1134 hrs
JobStreet.com survey: findings
Blogger’s Summary
Singaporean employers say that the main reason for hiring non-Singaporeans was their flexibility in taking up jobs that locals avoid. Other reasons are lower employee turnover rate; fewer demands at work; and a greater willingness to put in longer hours at work.
Employees believe that it is due to the lower cost of hiring non-Singaporeans.
Cost not main reason for hiring non-Singaporeans: survey
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Singapore: World Breastfeeding Week- Channel 5 News
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Breastfeeding Flash Mob: 20 mothers and their babies took part in the first mass breastfeeding event in Singapore.
Breastfeeding flash mob in the heart of Orchard Road
By Alvina Soh | Posted: 25 August 2012 1851 hrs
SINGAPORE: A group of mothers has given a new meaning to the term ‘flash mob’ right in the heart of Orchard Road, Singapore’s main shopping belt.
20 mothers and their babies took part in the first mass breastfeeding event in Singapore.
The mothers gamely nursed their babies in full view of the public for fifteen minutes.
Organisers are hoping that the flash mob can help promote nursing in public as a social and cultural norm.
The event organisers include the Breastfeeding Mothers’ Support Group Singapore, Association for Breastfeeding Advocacy and the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative’s Singapore committee.
Breastfeeding flash mob in the heart of Orchard Road
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WHEN UNCLE HARRY LEE SPEAKS, HE IS WORTH LISTENING TO…
Uncle Lee, or Uncle Harry, was the way university students as well as the common man called Lee Kuan Yew in the 1970’s.
It’s a long article, so Blogger will only provide highlights. Click on the link yourself at the end to read the whole article.
Malaysia Chronicle
Thursday, 23 August 2012 11:46
Kuan Yew shares a rare insight: How to get the best out of life!
Written by Lee Kuan Yew
REPRINT
My concern today is, what is it I can tell you which can add to your knowledge about aging and what aging societies can do.
1 He quit smoking
When I was about 57 that was – I was about 34, we were competing in elections, and I was really fond of drinking beer and smoking.
And after the election campaign, in Victoria Memorial Hall – we had won the election, the City Council election – I couldn’t thank the voters because I had lost my voice. I’d been smoking furiously.
I’d take a packet of 10 to deceive myself, but I’d run through the packet just sitting on the stage, watching the crowd, getting the feeling, the mood before I speak.
In other words, there were three speeches a night. Three speeches a night, 30 cigarettes, a lot of beer after that, and the voice was gone. I remember I had a case in Kuching, Sarawak . So I took the flight and I felt awful. I had to make up my mind whether I was going to be an effective campaigner and a lawyer, in which case I cannot destroy my voice, and I can’t go on.
So I stopped smoking.
2 Beer belly
Then one day I was at the home of my colleague, Mr Rajaratnam, meeting foreign correspondents including some from the London Times and they took a picture of me and I had a big belly like that (puts his hands in front of his belly), a beer belly.
I felt no, no, this will not do.
So I started playing more golf, hit hundreds of balls on the practice tee.
But this didn’t go down. There was only one way it could go down: consume less, burn up more.
3 He started running
Another turning point came in 1976, after the general election –
I was feeling tired. I was breathing deeply at the Istana, on the lawns.
My daughter, who at that time just graduating as a doctor, said: ‘What are you trying to do?’
I said: ‘I feel an effort to breathe in more oxygen.’ She said: ‘Don’t play golf. Run. Aerobics..’
(So) I said cut out the golf and let’s run.’
4 He believes that the most important thing in aging is to understand yourself.
‘Look, I’m feeling slower and sluggish.’
So he (the doctor) gave me a medical encyclopaedia and he turned the pages to aging. I read it up and it was illuminating.
A lot of it was difficult jargon but I just skimmed through to get the gist of it.
As you grow, you reach 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and then, thereafter, you are on a gradual slope down physically.
5 Dad’s DNA
I never planned to live till 85 or 84.! I just didn’t think about it.
I said: ‘Well, my mother died when she was 74, she had a stroke.. My father died when he was 94.’
But I saw him, and he lived a long life, well, maybe it was his DNA.
But more than that, he swam every day and he kept himself busy!
When he retired, he started becoming a salesman.
But at 87, 88, he fell, going down the steps from his room to the dining room, broke his arm, three months incapacitated.
Thereafter, he couldn’t go back to swimming. Then he became wheelchair-bound.
Then it became a problem because my house was constructed that way.
So my brother – who’s a doctor and had a flat (one-level) house – took him in.
And he lived on till 94. But towards the end, he had gradual loss of mental powers.
5 AGING involves a constant process of adjustment.
6 Worst thing – isolating oneself. Instead, have an interest.
But I think the most important single lesson I learnt in life was that if you isolate yourself, you’re done for..
It is the stimuli, it is the constant interaction with people across the world that keeps me aware and alive to what’s going on and what we can do to adjust to this different world.
In other words, you must have an interest in life.
If you believe that at 55, you’re retiring, you’re going to read books, play golf and drink wine, then I think you’re done for.
So when I read that people believe, Singaporeans say: ‘Oh, 62 I’m retiring.’ I say to them: ‘You really want to die quickly?’
If you want to see sunrise tomorrow or sunset, you must have a reason, you must have the stimuli to keep going..’
Mailbag
Kuan Yew shares a rare insight: How to get the best out of life!
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The study polled 2,000 Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents representing different gender, ages and living in different housing types.
S’poreans see society as “kiasu”, competitive, self-centred: survey
By Qiuyi Tan | Posted: 23 August 2012 2110 hr
SINGAPORE: Singapore society has often been described as “kiasu” – a term used to refer to Singaporeans’ innate fear of losing out.
This label still sticks, according to an independent survey by local consulting firm aAdvantage and the Barrett Values Centre.
Singapore residents were asked what values and behaviours described Singapore today.
Besides being “kiasu”, Singapore was seen to be competitive, self-centred, defined by material needs, and “kiasi’, a term which literally means being afraid of death.
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– CNA/ck
For more, click on
S’poreans see society as “kiasu”, competitive, self-centred: survey
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Behind Singapore Inc. (Part I): The growing class of ‘working poor’
By Jeanette Tan | Yahoo! Newsroom – 3 hours ago
In a wide-ranging interview with former GIC chief economist Yeoh Lam Keong, Yahoo! Singapore’s JEANETTE TAN finds out what he thinks are the key challenges Singapore faces in its quest for continued economic development. This is the first of a three-part series that dives into some of the country’s key policies and governance.
Could Singapore’s immigration policies over the past 15 years have created a separate, growing class of poor citizens?
Former chief economist to the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) Yeoh Lam Keong believes that may be the case.
Using a term he calls “the working poor” — a term he uses to refer to the bottom 10 per cent of working household breadwinners, who hold full-time jobs, but yet find themselves entrenched in the poverty cycle – he said, “In other words, even if you’re fully employed, you may barely earn enough money to bring up a family decently or to improve your children’s economic opportunities.”
“It’s a poverty in work, as opposed to poverty because you don’t have a job,” the 54-year-old said during a recent interview with Yahoo! Singapore.
Click on the link for more:
Behind Singapore Inc. (Part I): The growing class of ‘working poor’
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In Part II of “Behind Singapore Inc.”, Yeoh talks about ways in which the government can tackle the current housing crunch, and improve the affordability of healthcare and education.
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Law Minister disturbed by Singaporean’s remarks on Indians
inSing.com – 22 August 2012 4:30 PM | Updated 5:06 PM
A day after Law Minister K Shanmugam posted on his Facebook page about the unsafe driving habits of motorists, he is now voicing concern over the perceived prejudices against race among people in Singapore.
On Tuesday, the minister wrote that he received an email complaint from a Singaporean man telling him about the “Indian sweaty smell and unwashed bodies” of the man’s neighbours.
The man was apparently upset that he has to “tolerate” his Indian neighbours, and also described the Indian family as living in squalor and complained about their poor social status.
Mr Shanmugam wrote: “He then listed other Indians whom he found unpleasant – the Indian man smoking in the lift, the Indian woman with her dog, and his daughter’s Indian neighbour who walks around in a sarong, and said that he didn’t want his grandson growing up looking at Indian men in sarong.”
The minister said that the complaint regarding smoking in the lift is “understandable”, but “the rest of the complaints taken together, however, are quite disturbing”.
He said: “The resident appears to see his neighbour’s race as being the problem and the overt prejudice is quite troubling. Most Singaporeans would not agree with his perspective. We need to make sure that things stay positive among people of different races.”
The post had gathered more than 120 comments as of this afternoon.
Today, the Law Minister gave more details to those who responded to his post, stating that he has helped the man before. The man had thanked him for the help at the start of his email, but ended the email by saying that if no one cares to look into the problems with his neighbours, he would know which way to vote in the next elections.
Click on the link for more:
Law Minister disturbed by Singaporean’s…
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PHOTOS: Cyclist crashed into car in Jurong East
Posted by temasektimes on August 17, 2012
A horrific accident occurred in Jurong East on Wednesday. A cyclist with headphones on cut into the lane of an ongoing vehicle and crashed right into it, throwing him a few meters away on the ground:
Watch the video here
temasektimes.wordpress.com/…cyclist-crashed-into-car-in…
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Cyclist’s death prompts calls for greater safety on roads
Published on Aug 20, 2012
A cycling group which sent an e-mail to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong after a cyclist died on Saturday has followed up with an open letter to Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew.
Mr Freddy Khoo, 48, was killed after a lorry hit him and two other cyclists as they were riding in Loyang Avenue at about 6.50am that day.
Immediately after the accident, the founders of local cycling group LoveCyclingSg e-mailed the Prime Minister on the need to look into the issue of cycling safety.
In the letter sent to Mr Lui yesterday, Mr Francis Chu, the group’s co-founder, wrote: “My friend is dead. If, only if, I had written this letter earlier, Freddy might still be able to cycle with me in the next Ironman race.”
Cyclist’s death prompts calls for greater safety on roads
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In the first six months of this year, the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) received more than 1,300 complaints about defective goods, mostly on cars, furniture and handphones.
CASE said the complaints ranged from gearbox and engine problems in new cars to handphones with weak battery life.
SINGAPORE’S ‘LEMON LAW’
Retailers gear up for “lemon law”
By Joanne Chan | Posted: 20 August 2012 1533 hrs
SINGAPORE: Retailers in Singapore are gearing up for changes to new consumer protection laws — also known as “lemon law” — which kick in on September 1.
Aside from updating the terms of after-sale policies, some retailers have also been sending staff for training.
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Currently, the exchange or refund policy can differ between retailers. Some shops may offer up to seven days to exchange products, while others have a strict “no refund” policy.
But when new rules kick in on September 1, consumers will have up to six months to take action on any defective products.
The first stage of the lemon law requires retailers to offer a repair or exchange on a defective product, failing which, the consumer can seek a partial or full refund.
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Retailers gear up for “lemon law”
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IS THIS A JOKE? BUT IT ISN’T APRIL FOOL’S DAY!
Air from Singapore and other countries are now canned for sale
by Sadat Osman
inSing.com – 17 August 2012 11:11 AM | Updated 11:17 AM
(Photo / Etsy.com)It has to happen one day – the air that we breathe will no longer be free.
Czech photographer Kirill Rudenko has come up with the idea to package air and sell them as souvenirs.
So the next time you need gift ideas and are in a panic, just take a deep breath and remember this.
The photographer apparently travelled around the world, including Singapore, to collect the air from famous cities.
Going at USD$9.99 (S$12.50), the canned air is taken from different parts of a city – and the specific location is marked on the label.
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The advertisement for the product on Etsy.com states that sniffing the can of air relieves stress, cures homesickness and helps fight nostalgia.
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Air from Singapore and other countries…
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Deer found dead along Old Upper Thomson Rd
Posted: 19 August 2012 1913 hrs
SINGAPORE: A deer was found dead along the Old Upper Thomson Road on Sunday, presumably after it was hit by a car.
The area is more known for the monkeys found in the forest vegetation of the Lower Peirce Reservoir.
It’s likely the deer may have escaped from the nearby Singapore Zoo but this could not be confirmed as zoo officials were uncontactable.
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– CNA/ck
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