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[khunking]

Told about his missing father only after his death - eight years after police report

<HR class=line align=center color=#ff0000 noShade>What went wrong in my dad's case?
Son told about his missing father only after his death - eight years after police report was made

05:55 AM Jan 26, 2011
by Teo Xuanwei
SINGAPORE - For eight years he waited anxiously for news of the whereabouts of his dementia-stricken father.
When the police called on Dec 1 last year, Michael (not his real name), 52, got the news that he had been bracing for: His father, 70, had died from a chest infection in hospital.
But he was anguished to learn that he could have been reunited with his father only months after he had lodged a police report in 2002 - if not for lapses by Government agencies.
Said Michael, who works in the construction industry: "I want to know what went wrong these eight years. They should have been able to establish his identity easily when they found him, so why did it take them so long to contact us?"
In response to MediaCorp's queries, police spokesperson Lau Kian Keong said the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) had picked up Michael's father in May 2002 and found him disoriented.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Lau said: "He was later diagnosed to be suffering from dementia and MCYS' attempts to establish his identity were also unsuccessful."
DSP Lau added that a Police Gazette was issued but MediaCorp understands that the name of Michael's father was misspelled in it.
It was only six years later, in 2008, that the authorities managed to establish the identity of Michael's father, DSP Lau said. He did not explain the delay nor how they finally established his identity.
In December the following year, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) also issued him a new identity card - believed to be because Michael's father needed to be admitted to hospital.
The card bore his original IC number but lists the Lions Home for the Elders at Toa Payoh Rise address as his address.
When contacted, the home declined to comment, citing confidentiality reasons.
Yet, the authorities never contacted Michael all this while, until his father died in Tan Tock Seng Hospital on Nov 30 last year.
Said DSP Lau: "Regrettably, due to a lapse in communication, his missing person status was only discovered when he passed away in hospital last year. We regret the lapse and the failure to inform the family earlier when his identity was established. Police are studying how to strengthen the current processes to avoid such a lapse in the future."
When asked what went wrong in this case, an MCYS spokesperson would only say it has "an established system and works in coordination with other Government agencies to trace identities of persons picked up and also find out their reasons for vagrancy".
Homes which MediaCorp spoke to said they do not have the authority to run checks on the identities and backgrounds of destitute persons. MCYS social workers are responsible for establishing these persons' identities and contacting their families, they added.
Under the Destitute Persons Act, an inquiry may also be ordered on people picked up by MCYS. Their fingerprints and photographs may also be taken.
Adventist Home for the Elders chairman Wan Kwong Weng told MediaCorp that he had not heard of such cases before.
"Usually, you find that these destitute persons are estranged from their families," said Mr Wan. He noted that more could be done to help families find their missing loved ones. For example, there could be a shared database for the relevant agencies to share information, he said.
For Michael and his family, such a system could have made a difference.
Timeline of events
Early 2002 Son lodges police report about missing father, who was suffering from dementia.

May 2002 Father picked up by MCYS and believed to have been sent to elderly home. Attempts to verify identity were unsuccessful.

2008 The authorities establish father's identity but family was not contacted.

Dec 2009 The ICA issues a new identity card to the father.

Nov 2010 Father passes away from a chest infection in Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Son informed of the passing a day later.



URL http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC110126-0000164/What-went-wrong-in-my-dads-case
Copyright 2011 MediaCorp Pte Ltd | All Rights Reserved
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[khunking]

Ex-NUS Graduate: “I’m a failed product of our meritocratic educational system”

Ex-NUS Graduate: “I’m a failed product of our meritocratic educational system”

January 27th, 2011 |

Author: Contributions

I am a 35-year-old male home-grown Singapore Chinese citizen. I graduated in 2000 from NUS Business School and harboured high hope of a good life afterward.
However, when I started work in an operations position, my pay was only SGD 2100 – way below the general market rate of SGD 2500 for fresh grads.
At that time, job competition and wage depression were prevalent and I didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity as it was better that I have a job than nothing at all.
My situation may sound unbelievable to you but it is true – since then, I have been stucked in a prolonged underemployment and unemployment cycle of which I can see no light for the past ten years!
As of Jan 2011, I have been out of proper employment for 8 months after completing a contract operations job. Contractual work arrangement means that I will be working for a while and stay unemployed for another long period before I managed to secure another contractual work arrangement again.
Its not ideal for work security and there is no way that I can even think of starting a family with such unstable job arrangement prevalent in our current work environment.
Relentless marketing of so-called foreign talent by the PAP has reinforced the view that foreigners are better even though they may not be and their services are not actually cheap either.
I have heard of foreigners earning $5000 when I could barely earn above $2000 and I hailed from the prestigious world-classed National University of Singapore! Something must be wrong somewhere…
Local home-grown HR managers have told me that foreigners were being hired simply because these people were foreigners. Everyone liked the idea of a diverse workplace until they were badly affected by their adverse work ethics and knowledge.
When I was hired for contract positions, the supervisors were always anxious I would disappear suddenly and they had to find replacement. People of my profile are expected to cut and run after 3 months.
This was despite the fact that I have always completed my contract term. They just couldn’t commit to a more permanent work arrangement with me.
From my observation, organizations generally preferred females (including foreign females) for the positions I applied for. These positions include administration, accounting, banking, finance, operations (office-based), human resources, retail services and sales support.
Organizations only employed males for engineering, sales and technical positions. I did not have the relevant engineering and technical background.
I have also noticed that more sales positions are now occupied by females leaving me wondering what kind of jobs are available for guys!
The only sales area where males still maintain the majority count was those of a self-employed nature.
I have also stopped applying to insurance companies because they were only interested in me becoming an insurance agent.
Some people have suggested that I go into teaching or tuition. The idea of exhorting young students to study hard for a brighter future is totally repulsive as I am the clear example of a big failure from our renowned meritocratic educational system. We are encouraged to study hard, get good grades and graduate but in the end, we all struggled to get stable decent jobs and this unpleasant situation is not only unique to me… many of my peers are caught in the same tragic cycle too.
What good is it if you have all the A’s in your report card but you could not find ready employment long after you have graduated?
Furthermore, the Ministry of Education is likely to reject me just like any other civil service or related positions that I have previously applied for.
As I felt that my NUS educational background has been either irrelevant or a liability, I have been careful in taking up any upgrading courses. In 2003, I was even rejected for a position as I was still taking a part-time course!
Other people in my situation would have long emigrated or become self-employed. I need not describe my frustrations further as this has been repeated by many people here.
I hope you are able to assist me. Please keep up the good work on your website. Thanks.
.
Regds,
Chua S

 

[khunking]

Lessons to learn from Egypt protests

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</TD></TR><TR><TD>News @ AsiaOne
Lessons to learn from Egypt protests
Foreign minister George Yeo said minute adjustments were preferred to sudden, big changes. -myp

Mon, Feb 07, 2011
my paper
By Gerrard Lai
THERE are lessons Singapore can learn from the ongoing protests in Egypt, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC George Yeo said yesterday.
"Unless you adjust to changes in the world, changes will be forced upon you, in a way that doesn't give you time to prepare," he said.
Contrasting Egypt and Singapore, he added: "Egypt is by far the largest Arab country and has an intellectual and cultural position second to none... When the changes come, it's a big tremor."
For a small country like Singapore, "it is always better to make adjustments the way we've done...adjusting to new technologies; adjusting to globalisation".
Minute adjustments, while uncomfortable, may be better than holding things off until, one day, it becomes a very big change, he said.
The latest reports from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that 225 Singaporeans, including 190 students, have returned to Singapore.
The Singapore Embassy in Cairo will maintain contact with the few who remain in Egypt to provide necessary consular assistance.
Mr Yeo was speaking at the Fish for Luck 2011 ceremony held on the floating deck in Bedok Reservoir, where a "new lease of life" was given to some 1,188 gouramis yesterday.
During the Chinese New Year event, the fish were released into the water as a symbolic gesture for life and luck.
The event, organised by the Bedok Reservoir-Punggol Citizens' Consultative Committee and Shops Sub Committee, was held in consultation with the national water agency PUB.
Commenting on the sidelines of the event, Mr Yeo said about Egypt: "We've no influence over unfolding events (there), we will observe and monitor the impact on peace in that region. Naturally, we're on the side of those who want peace, who want a better life for their people."
Speaking about the impact the Egyptian protests would have on the world and Singapore, he noted that the immediate economic effects would be higher oil prices.
"It's like a tax on the global economy and this has immediate implications on everybody."
"In the longer term, what's happening in Egypt will affect the entire Arab world... There's an added implication of the Palestinian question and the peace in the Middle East between Israel and its neighbours."
Mr Yeo said he hoped that the transition in Egypt would be a peaceful one, and that all groups in the country would act with wisdom and not be too impatient.
"You can't have dramatic change overnight. It is a big country, over 80 million people, so the transition has...to be carefully done, so that it will be peaceful and the lives of ordinary people will not be adversely affected."

For more my paper stories click here.
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</TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD align=center>Copyright ©2011 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. Co. Regn. No. 198402868E. All rights reserved.
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[BlueCat]

can smell that the election is coming soon.

 

[khunking]

Get Real

CPF wins the Stockholm Challenge 2010!
CPF has won the prestigious The Stockholm Challenge 2010 Award in the area of public administration! Our project - my cpf : Singapore Central Provident Fund Board's Service Transformation Journey - is one of seven winners out of 290 projects from 90 countries.

The Stockholm Challenge Award is an international award open to projects that use infocommunication technology to improve people's social and economic conditions and their environment. The award was launched in 1994 to reward promising IT entrepreneurs from all over the world. CPF is the first Singapore government agency to win such an award.

In conferring us the award, the organiser has the following to say about our project:

"CPF is a project for a developed country, but which can, and maybe should, be applied to the developing world. This is a solid, high quality, public administration project. Empowerment for secure retirement is important when global economic uncertainties are so great. It is a government project, with no funding issues but which has responded to the people's needs. The CPF Website offers comprehensive information to customers. It uses IT in innovative and creative way for customers such as providing interactive calculators and games, making the site interesting and user-friendly. They have introduced CPF to younger customers by developing online quizzes such as “IM$avvy Financial Literacy Quiz” and “CPF Savviness Index (CSI) Quiz” that received over 95,000 entries by the public. The project also bridges the digital divide by introducing biometric e-counter for the elderly. Possibility for user to change font size and get automatic voice reading of the text, biometric log-in for elderly. CPF has also focus groups to develop services, high degree of innovation to change business processes within the organization as well as different kind of customers to use the services. Amazingly it has influenced positively user behavior. It has high customer satisfaction with 98% of all transactions are done online. Everything about CPF project is right. Congratulations Singapore for an outstanding contribution. This is the way governmental ICT services should be!"

 

[khunking]

Remittance Paradise

<HR>
Upbeat real interest rate prods Filipinos to save


Article posted February 13, 2011 - 05:00 PM
Filipino consumers will continue to save in anticipation of the proverbial rainy day as the country's real interest rate remains positive, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said this weekend.

But people in other countries — like the US, UK, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand — do not have the compulsion to save because their real interest rates have gone negative, according to the central bank.

Real interest rate is defined as the policy rate of central banks minus the inflation rate.

Since July 2009, the policy-setting Monetary Board has placed the overnight borrowing rate at 4 percent. National Statistics Office records, meanwhile, show that the country's inflation reached 3.5 percent in last month.

BSP Deputy Gov. Diwa Guinigundo told reporters that the Philippines is "enjoying" a positive real interest rate of 0.50 percent.

Other countries that were blessed with positive real interest rates included: Taiwan (0.38 percent), Malaysia (0.75 percent), and New Zealand (1.5 percent).

On the other hand, the Euro region, India, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, and Indonesia were the other countries that posted negative real interest rates.

According to Guinigundo, the real lending rate in the country is "just right" at 2.9 percent and "compares well" with real lending rates in the region — where the highest (Indonesia's) averages 5.4 percent and the lowest (Taiwan's) is only 1.4 percent.

This was based on nominal lending rate of 6.4 percent for prime Filipino borrowers and inflation rate of 3.5 percent in January, Guinigundo explained.

Inflation issues

Tim Condon, head of financial markets at ING Bank in Singapore, said in an interview with reporters that the Philippine inflation may "pick up a little bit over the near term but not too much."

He likewise brushed aside some market commentaries that the Bangko Sentral has been tardy in meeting the challenge of rising inflation exported into the region from developed markets.

"There is no real wolf inflation in the door and this behind-the-curve tale is way overdone," Condon said.

The BSP's handling of inflation issues also drew comments from the Institute of International Finance (IIF): "The central bank diverged from its neighbors by refraining from raising policy rates as the recovery has taken hold... [T]he maintenance of positive real interest rates through the crisis diminishes the urgency of returning to post-crisis normality."

IIF also said the positive real interest rate has allowed peso borrowers to obtain loans with interest rates that foster borrowing and help support economic growth, which is expected to average between 7 and 8 percent this year. — JE, GMA News
<HR>All Rights Reserved. 2006 © GMA Network Inc.
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[khunking]

Sir, Can I Have More?

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</TD></TR><TR><TD>News @ AsiaOne
Be realistic about Budget goodies
Government must put aside some money for future uncertainties: DPM Teo. -AsiaOne

Sun, Feb 13, 2011
AsiaOne
Singapore recorded high economic growth in 2010, and there are people who expect that this year's Budget will have many handouts for Singaporeans.
However, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said in a speech yesterday that people should have 'realistic' expectations of the Budget. The Government always has to save some money in preparation for rainy days, he said at a Chinese New Year gathering in his consistuency, Pasir-Ris-Punggol GRC.
DPM Teo however assured that the Government would share the fruits of the nation's growth with Singaporeans, particularly among the low-income and senior citizens.
He also urged Singaporeans to look at the track record of the People's Action Party (PAP) since the last elections in 2006, and to consider if candidates can be trusted to serve not just the individual voters, but the whole country.
The Budget is to be announced this Friday, Feb 18
More stories:
» Singapore Budget to be delivered on February 18
» MOF launches the Budget Challenge
» Budget 2011: Something good for S'pore
» Budget likely won't cut taxes
» A Budget to grow Singapore economy
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[khunking]

Singapore’s Total Defence: Shaping The Pillars

Singapore’s Total Defence: Shaping The Pillars

Written by: RSIS


The pillars of Total Defence should be shaped in tandem with the evolution of Singapore as a nation state and global city. Its foundations, however, must be firmly grounded in a local Singaporean core.


By Ong Weichong


‘HOME – Keeping it Together’ is the theme for Total Defence 2011. This year’s Total Defence (TD) campaign seeks to remind all Singaporeans that Singapore is worth defending — simply because it is home. Introduced in 1984, the concept of TD was adapted from the comprehensive defence strategies of Switzerland and Sweden. In the Singapore context, TD is set within a framework of five distinct but interdependent pillars – Military Defence, Civil Defence, Economic Defence, Social Defence and Psychological Defence. Conceptually, these five pillars constitute the key sectors of society and the bedrock of national security.
Evolving Total Defence
Singapore

Since 1984, the tools and means of citizen engagement have evolved to keep up with the ever increasing technological savviness of its young citizens. For example, as part of the Republic of Singapore Navy’s (RSN) online recruitment drive, Singaporeans are encouraged to fill a tag cloud containing ‘gadgets and stuff that you [Singaporeans] can’t live without’. At the end of the online competition, laptops and iPhones were declared as the top two items that Singaporeans ‘cannot live without’. At the TD level, Macbooks, Sony Vaios, iPads and high-end digital cameras are awarded for the ‘most popular’ or the ‘most creative’ webcasts and animations on each year’s TD theme. In short, the tools and means of citizen engagement have evolved in tandem with societal embracement of networking technology. Nonetheless, the evolution of TD in relation with other aspects of societal change is less clear cut.
Pillars of TD in a Global City
Robust economic growth and prudent fiscal policy have ensured the strength of the Military, Civil and Economic pillars of TD. A consistent defence budget pegged at five to six percent of Singapore’s GDP (US$ 9.5 billion billion in 2011) has transformed the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) into Southeast Asia’s most advanced military. Likewise, significant investment in Singapore’s Home Team crisis management agencies and task forces guarantee a prompt response in the event of a civil emergency. Both the Military Defence and Civil Defence pillars are in turn buttressed by an Economic Defence pillar of strong economic growth. In sum, technologically and economically, TD has continued to evolve and remained robust in the last two decades. The same, however, is less certain for the Social Defence and Psychological Defence pillars.
In the TD context, Social Defence is the ‘resin’ that binds society, whereas Psychological Defence is the ‘harderner’ which gives it resilience. Both Social Defence and Psychological Defence combine to form an epoxy glue that holds Singapore society together in times of crisis. For the global city that is Singapore, there is a danger that both social and psychological resilience will be diluted by the effects of globalisation. Therefore the challenge is for TD planners to reconcile internal cohesion with the effects of free movement and competition associated with globalisation.
The evolution of TD can never be divorced from global forces that shape Singapore. Indeed, the robustness and sustainability of TD’s Military, Civil and Economic pillars depend upon Singapore’s continued relevance as a global hub. Nonetheless, in the environs of a global city state where individuals live as citizens of the world, steps must be taken to mitigate the dilution of social and national cohesion amongst its local citizens.
Local Bedrock of TD
An examination of Singapore’s recent past demonstrates that the highly connected patterns of migration and trade have pushed and pulled distant regions together into the Lion City and shaped its character. Indeed, the convergence of this push-pull effect has not homogenised Singapore into some staid downtown hotel chain, but nurtured the development of a distinct local identity. In the ubiquity of an ever interconnected and globalised world, it is this unique identity that Singapore must build upon to strengthen its social and psychological resilience.
In ‘Keeping it Together’, Singapore must have a citizenry that believes in the continued existence of Singapore not merely as a global city, but as a sovereign nation state. As this year’s TD theme suggests, in order for TD to transcend the theoretical, Singaporeans must believe that Singapore is a home that is worth defending on all fronts. Such a belief can only arise through the organic growth of a common national identity and culture rooted in shared experiences and memories.
In 46 years of nation-building, Singaporeans have forged a unique local eco-system that fosters the natural growth of such a common identity, culture, community and norms. So much so that it is now possible to define the rubric of an emergent Singaporean identity and culture. It is upon this bedrock of a shared Singaporean identity and culture that the Social and Psychological pillars of TD must be continuously shaped and if necessary – recast.
Decades from now, what it means to be a Singaporean or Singaporeaness will require a slightly different answer. It is inevitable that Singapore will continue to transform and redefine itself in accordance with the global winds of change. Likewise, TD can never be divorced from the global forces that shape Singapore and its society. However, Singapore’s local core, exemplified by the shared values of multiculturalism; meritocracy; and commitment to nation-building provides the firm foundation on which the Social and Psychological pillars of TD will continue to evolve upon.
To unplug itself from the global network would be detrimental to Singapore’s prosperity and national security. Therefore, the pillars of TD must develop in tandem with the evolution of Singapore as a nation state and global city. Nonetheless, without a deeply rooted self-belief in Singapore as a distinct national, cultural, and social entity, the continued sovereignty of Singapore as a nation state will be in peril.


Ong Weichong is Associate Research Fellow with the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University. He is attached to the Military Transformations Programme at the school’s constituent unit, the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies.

 

[khunking]

Pre-Election Track Record

1. 7% GST
a) its to help the poor by taxing the rich and redistributing the wealth to the poor.However,i do not understand why the middle class have to suffer

2. CPF
a) it is to make sure the older people are self-reliant.Again,it doesn't make much sense if 51%of the pop cannot meet the minimum sum


3. 2 YEARS NS
a)it has always been there.no changes made wad.In fact it has shorten to abt 1.8mths.However,is reservist still relevant?


4. Increase in transport fares -high oil prices.everywhere in the world is facing it
a)PAP is conning us - when oil price shot up, it immediately increase, when it came down. PAP refuse to reduce it



5. Increase in electrical bills-high oil prices.everywhere in the world is facing it, electrical tariff can be lowered one. Singapore has one of the highest electrical tariff
private company ftw

a) our electricity is produce by gas, when oil price shot up PAP took opportunity to also increase it. But when it came down PAP said it is not related
b) PAP told us by selling our power plant to Foreigners will help reduce the electric bill. It of cos did not materialize but in fact had price hike 3 times within a yr.

6. Once every 50 years

7. ERP
a) to help reduce traffic

8. ask you to send your parents to jb when they are old
a) to help u save $

9. invite more FT's here
a) to create more jobs

10. ask us to help the FT's fit in by being cheaper better and faster than them

11. increase their own pay to a million dollar salary reason being that they are not 'daft'
a) so to keep talents from going to the private sector

12. FTS create jobs for us

13. Temasek lost 50bil.every sinkie can get at least 10k.Including those newborns slping in the hositals
a) but they earn back with in 1 year?

14. oil price shot up, transport fare increases, when it came down. PAP refuse to reduce it cause its not pegged to oil

15. Mas Selamat Toilet Break!

16. WongCantSing: Voting is a privilege, not a right.

17. Singaporean Salary to increase by 30% in the next 10 years, then they increased their own salary 30% in 1 year with 8 months +- bonus

18. table tennis saga

19. yog saga

18. PAP Town Councils

a)instead of reducing charges they went on to collect surplus so that they can gamble like Ho Jinx.

19. HDB Prices

20. Casino help create jobs that goes mostly to FT

21. MRT DEPOT

 

[khunking]

Pre-Election Track Record

The cost of living is increasing

2006

Jan 9: Pump prices at all 29 Caltex stations will go up from 11pm on Monday night. Prices will go up by four cents per litre for all three grades. (link)

Feb 13: Polytechnics and ITE increase fees by $50 and $10 respectively (link) (link)

Feb 14: NTU, NUS to raise tuition fees by 3% from next academic year. Tuition fees at both the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University will go up by S$180 for the next academic year. This 3 percent increase comes on the heels of a 5 percent hike just last year. (link)

Mar 6: Expect annual tuition fee increases. Hostel fees will also go up by 10% to 11% from next academic year. (NTU) (link)

Mar 9: Retail pump prices for Synergy petrol and diesel at all Esso and Mobil service stations in Singapore were increased by 6 cents a litre. (link) (link)


June 1: NTUC Car Co-Op raises fuel surcharge: We cannot continue subsidizing the fuel price increase in the long run without compromising the quality of service. Thus, the management has decided to implement a fuel surcharge of $0.30 for every 10km free with effect from 1 June 2006. (link)

June 27: Electricity tariff to go up next quarter. Domestic users, for example, will have to pay 21.15 cents for every kWH of electricity, up from 20.49 cents currently. (link)

July 10: Comfort Delgro raises taxi fares. Besides raising the flag down fare and the peak hour surcharge from $1 to $2, ComfortDelgro is also making distance-related adjustment. (link) (link)

July: Taxi companies raise fares. (link) (link)

July 17: SMRT hikes taxi fares. (link)

Aug: SMRT, SBS apply for fare hike. (link)

Aug: NUS hikes tuition fees by between $180, $220, and $510, depending on faculty. (link)

Aug: ERP rates to go up at six gantries, mainly at CTE. (link)

Oct: Public Transport Council approves 1.7% fare increase for bus and trains. Adult EZ-link fares for buses and trains will increase by 1 to 3 cents, which amounts to an overall fare hike of 1.7 percent. (link)

Nov: SingPost revises postage rate. (link)

Nov 12: Rates for HDB rental flats pegged to income. (link)

Dec: Govt spells out fees to be frozen. (link)

2006: Loan sharks cases rise by 19%, to 10, 221 cases. (link)

2006: A total of 419 people committed suicide in 2006, up from 346 in 2003. The suicide rate per 100,000 residents - a sobering indicator in population statistics - is also on the upswing, growing from 9.3 in 2003 to 10.3 in 2006, figures from the Registry of Births and Deaths reveal. It is the fourth straight rise in as many years. (ST, Aug 13, 2007) (link)

2006: Islandwide, home rentals climbed 10 per cent in 2006. (ST, Aug 6, 2007) (link)

2006: At Alexandra Hospital, A&E charges went up from $55 to $60, as did C-class ward charges — from $21 to $23 — and subsidised specialist outpatient clinic consultation rates, from $18 to $20. (link)
2007

Jan: All diesel-driven vehicles to undergo smoke test. (link)

Jan: NUH’s A&E fee raised from $70 to $80. (link)

Jan: Skilled Foreign workers levy raised by $50, from $100 to $150, for all sectors. (link) (link)

Jan 26: SMU Law Course to cost more, NUS says it may increase fees too. (link)

Feb: KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital hikes ward treatment fees. (link)

Feb 14: Tax penalties from GST audits could increase. With the hike in Goods and Services Tax (GST) by two percentage points, tax analysts said tax penalties arising from businesses making mistakes in GST audits may also increase. (link)

Feb 25: Sunny Cove: Fees to Pulau Hantu Raised - As of 24th February 2007 (Saturday), the operator had increased the price for the chartering of boat to local water. With the price hike, all courses conducted at local water will be subjected to the increase from 25th February 2007 (Sunday) onwards. (link)

Feb 25: Eldershield premiums to go up by year’s end. (link)

April 1: Singapore Medical Association withdraws guidelines on fees. Doctors now have more flexibility to adjust their fees, following a decision by the Singapore Medical Association (SMA) to withdraw its guidelines on fees, as of 1 April. (link)

April 1: URA increase fees for Housing Developers’s Licence – from between $500 to $8,000. (link)

April 2: NUS revise car park charges. (link)


April 8: Means testing for hospital admission to start within a year. Subsidised patients that stay more than five days in a public hospital can expect some questions about their income. (link) (link)

April 11: Ikea to start charging customers for plastic bags. (ST, 11 April, 2007)

April 25: The Singapore American School increased tuition fees by between $425 and $1,000. (link)

April: Within hours of each other, the four petrol companies in Singapore - First Shell, then Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC), ExxonMobil and lastly Chevron - each revised its prices. The retail price of petrol and diesel rose by 10 cents. (Electric New Paper) (link) (link)

May 12: Inflation heads for a higher plane. For now, the major public concern is a rise in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) from 5% to 7% in July, which is likely to exacerbate the series of worrying price increases over the past year. (Littlespeck)

May 14: NUH increase ward charges for B2 and C-class wards by $2, increases of 4 and 8 per cent. (link)

May 23: DBS raises its e-transaction fee for initial public offering (IPO) applications. Retail investors who applied for IPO shares launched on or after that date, through the local bank’s ATMs and Internet banking, were surprised that they now have to pay $2. (link)

May 29: New fee hikes at public hospitals and polyclinics. A NEW round of fee hikes is underway at most public hospitals and some polyclinics. Subsidised patients at four public hospitals will now pay $24 or $25 for every visit to a specialist clinic, up from about $21. All 18 polyclinics, which used to charge a standard consultation fee of $8 for adults, now charge anything from $8-$8.80. (link) (link) (link)

May: From milk to Milo, cooking oil to coffee, canned foods, processed foods, wheat products and more, prices have been rising recently at supermarkets and hypermarts here. (link) (link) (link)

June 1: Prices of milk go up. The price increase for condensed milk ranged from $0.10 to $0.50, which means the prices for some brands of condensed milk have gone up by nearly 45 per cent. The price increase for evaporated milk ranged from $0.15 to $0.47, marking a percentage increase of between 18 per cent to 48 per cent. (link) (link)


June 4: Online hosiery shop increases price. There will be a overall price increase on 4th June 2007 for all brands due to increased cost of yarns and cost of shipping. (link)



June 6: Even before the Nets fee hike kicks in, a shoe shop in Parkway Parade has already started charging customers extra to cover the increase. (link)

June 7: Wholesale price of ducks goes up. The wholesale price of ducks has increased by 20 cents a kilogram. (link)

June 7: Eggs price increase. Eggs now cost between 17 cents and 18 cents each. (link)

June 29: Rental space rents rise. Islandwide, rents at Grade A malls have moved up by between 5-7 per cent in the first half of this year and could increase by another 5-6 per cent by end-2007, analysts said. (Business Times, June 29, 2007) (link)

June 29: Fees up by 14% on average at NUS. Two days before the higher 7-per-cent GST kicked in on July 1, prospective students of the continuing education arm of the National University of Singapore (NUS) received news that fees for many courses had gone up — by an average 14 per cent. (link)

July 1st: GST increased from 5% to 7%. (link) (link)

July 1st: THE Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC) and market leader ExxonMobil became the first companies to raise pump prices at their petrol stations following the GST hike. The two companies increased prices across the board for their three grades of petrol and diesel by 0.23 cents to 0.33 cents per litre from 7am. Caltex will be increasing its pump prices on Monday. (ST, July 1, 2007) (link) (link)

July 1st: NETS announced a price hike for its Electronic Funds Transfer Point-of-Sale (EFTPOS) and CashCard Services to between 1.5% and 1.8%. (link) (link)

July 1st: Pasir Ris – Punggol Town Council revise penalties for late payment of S&C charges to 2% and absorb 7% GST. (2004 rates) (2007 rates)

July 1st: Cigarette prices up as bar ban kicks in. Tobacco companies raised the prices of popular brands by an average of 40 cents. This brought the price of a 20-stick pack of Marlboro or Dunhill cigarettes, for example, to $11.60. (AsiaOne)

July 3: Resale price index for HDB flats rise 2.9% from 3 months before. (link)

July 4: The Committee Against GST Profiteering (CAP) has found price changes to be generally moderate since the announcement of the GST increase in November 2006. (link)

July 10: Changi General Hospital increases A&E charges. Following in the wake of earlier hikes by the National University Hospital and Alexandra Hospital, CGH this month increased its A&E attendance fee by $10 — or 15 per cent — to $75. For the B2 and C-class wards, the daily treatment fee went up by $1, representing a 6-to-10-per-cent increment. The daily ward charge for B2 wards also rose by $1, or 2 per cent. (link)

July 11: Starhub raise prices for cable tv packages. SCV subscribers pay $4 more across the board. (link) (link) (link)

July 11: The Committee Against GST Profiteering has received 33 complaints in the past six months about price increases, all dealing with food items. About 10 cases involve chain businesses. (ST, July 11, 2007) (link)

July 15: Electricity tariffs to be raised by almost 9% for July to September. (link)

July 18: Govt raises development charge from 50% to 70% for new building projects from 50 per cent to 70 per cent of the increase in value of the land. (link) (link)

July 21: HDB rents at 10-year high. For the first time in recent memory, monthly rents for some HDB flats have pushed northwards of $2,000 in leases signed in the last couple of months. (ST, 21 July 2007) (link)

July 25: Hospital bills up 10% to 30% across all ward classes. (link)


July: July inflation hits 2.6%, highest in over 12 years. (link)


July (CPI): Housing costs increased 4.9 per cent because of higher housing maintenance charges, electricity tariffs and rented accommodation costs. (ST, Aug 23, 2007) (link)



July (CPI): Food prices went up by 1.4 per cent, mainly due to dearer cooked food, fresh fish, fruits, vegetables and milk powder. (link)


July (CPI): Transport and communication prices moved up by 1 per cent, reflecting mainly dearer petrol and higher car prices. (link)

July (CPI): The index for education and stationery rose by 2.1 per cent as a result of higher fees at commercial institutions and universities. (link)

July (CPI): Prices of clothing and footwear increased by 3.9 per cent. (link)

July (CPI): Health care cost rose by 2.2 per cent on account of dearer chinese herbs and higher charges for general medical consultation and dental treatment. (link)


Aug 2: SBS, SMRT seeking bus, train fare increases. If approved, transport fares could rise by up to three cents from October. (link)

Aug 2: Singapore Airlines raises fuel surcharge – from between US$2, US$5 and US$9. (link)

Aug 6: ERP rates at Orchard, YMCA and Fort Canning Tunnel to go up. From August 6, cars passing the Orchard, YMCA and Fort Canning Tunnel gantries will be charged an additional $0.50. That makes it $1 per entry. Rates for motorcycles will also double to $0.50. Goods vehicles and small buses will now be charged $1.50. Heavy goods vehicles and big buses will be charged $2. (link)

Aug 7: Student made to pay adult fare. (link)

Aug 7: Cost of living in S’pore getting higher compared to neighbours. Singapore retains its 9th position out of 41 Asian locations as the most costly city. (CNA)

Aug 7: Car insurance premiums likely to increase. Higher premium rates for car insurance look almost certain, after the motor sector suffered a second consecutive quarter of losses. Rises could be between 5 and 10 per cent, according to one insurer, as the industry battles higher claims. (AsiaOne, ST, Aug 7, 2007)

Aug 8: 17% hike in Delifrance’s tuna croissant sandwich, from $5.05 to $5.90. (link)

Aug 10: Change of supplier sees spike in price of medicine. A 80ml bottle of Minoxi 5 from Trima Pharmaceutical used to cost $38.50. This time round, the price was $45.50 for a 60ml bottle. Going by volume, the price increase was a hefty 57.6 per cent. (ST Forum, Aug 10, 2007) (link)

Aug 13: Up to 30% levy imposed on hotel room revenues during F1 race. The Trade and Industry Ministry (MTI) has decided a levy of 30 per cent for hotels on the trackside, and 20 per cent for others. (link)

Aug 23: More ERP gantries, extended hours. (link) (link)

Aug 24: By Aug 24, the Committee Against GST Profiteering had received 115 complaints on alleged GST profiteering. In the first two weeks of July, after the GST increase came into effect, 49 complaints were received, surpassing the 30 complaints received in May. (ST, Aug 29, 2007)

Aug 27: Singapore raises 2007 inflation forecast to 1-2 per cent. Singapore’s central bank confirmed an apparent off-the-cuff remark by Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang in parliament that inflation would come in at 1-2 percent this year, above the government’s previous forecast of 0.5-1.5 percent. (Reuters)

Aug 29: Middle-aged suicide rate up. In 2003, there were 14 suicides (of men in their 40s and 50s) per 100,000. In 2006, it went up to 19 per 100,000. For women, there were 8 per 100,000. In 2006, it went up to 13 per 100,000. (TODAY, Aug 29, 2007) (link)

Aug 29: Storage boom as rents rise. Companies which provide self-storage facilities are reporting a rise in rentals by foreigners as rising rental prices force more of them to downsize. (The Electric New Paper, Aug 29, 2007) (link)

Aug 31: Government raises property development charges. For non-landed residential use, the charge was raised by an average of 58 percent with prime areas like Cantonment Road seeing the biggest jump of 112 percent. Areas seeing the highest increase (of over 100 percent) include Telok Ayer, Maxwell, Shenton, Anson and South Bridge Road. (CNA)

Sept 1st: New dog licensing rules. To discourage dog owners from keeping unlicensed dogs, allowing their dogs to stray or not muzzling dogs of breeds2 that are required to be muzzled in a public place (eg, the Rottweiller or Mastiff); the maximum fine for such offences has been raised from $500 to $5,000. (link)

Sept 5: Esso won’t go public on fuel price changes. IF YOU are an Esso customer, you will not know if the price of your fuel has changed until you drive right up to a pump. ExxonMobil - the biggest player here with 74 out of the total of about 200 stations - has adopted a new policy against revealing changes in pump prices to the media. Neither does it display prices at station entrances. (Straits Times, Sept 5, 2007)

Sept 11: Adult EZ-link fares for buses upped from October. From 1 October, adult EZ-link fares for buses will increase by between one and two cents. But there will be no increase for train fares. (CNA)

Sept 12: Special needs school raise fees by 100%. I was shocked to receive a letter in July stating that school fees would increase by 100 per cent from this month. No other institution - even private schools - operates in this manner by increasing its fees by 100 per cent. (Letter to ST forum)

Sept 13: Employers to buy medical insurance for foreign workers. From January next year (2008), employers will have to buy and maintain insurance for the medical expenses of all foreign workers on Work Permit or S Pass. (CNA)

Sept 25: Electricity tariffs to go up because of higher oil prices. Barely 2 months after the increase of 9% in July, electricity tariffs will again go up later this year because of higher oil prices. SP Services said electricity tariffs will be raised by an average of 0.86 cent, or 4.29 percent, per kilowatt-hour, for the three months from October to December. (CNA)

Sept 25: Cosmetics costing more? Taking a hit from the Goods and Services Tax hike, prices of consumer products in Singapore grew at a pace not seen since 1994. (TODAY)

Sept 27: Gardenia loaf of bread cost 5% more in three months. “Yesterday we found out that its price has soared to $2. If you work that out against the original $1.90, it means that the total price increased is 5.3 per cent in three months.” (Letter to ST forum page.)

Sept 29: Why higher fees for vacant flat? “MY LATE grandfather, who was the sole owner and occupier of a three-room HDB flat, had been paying $38 a month in conservancy fees to the town council. His estate now has to pay $55 a month (a 45 per cent increase) for the vacant flat, the reason being that the $38 concessionary charge no longer applies as it is now unoccupied.” (Letter to ST Forum Page)(link)

Sept: Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society to increase fees from between $5 to $10 due to the society becoming a GST-registered entity. (link)

Oct: Starhub Cable TV sports channels subscribers pay $10 more. (link)

Oct 1: Public transport fare increase takes effect.

Oct 1: Private home prices in Q3 up by 8%: URA flash estimate. The prices of private residential property in Singapore increased by eight per cent in the third quarter of this year.. (CNA)

Oct 1: HDB resale prices up by 6.5% in Q3: HDB’s flash estimate. Public housing resale prices went up by 6.5 percent in the third quarter of this year, compared to the previous three months. (CNA)

Oct 1: Petrol, diesel price up 3-5 cents. At 10am, Caltex increased its petrol and diesel prices by 3 cents a litre, while Shell upped its rates by 5 cents a litre. By 3pm, Singapore Petroleum Co followed suit by raising its pump rates by 5 cents a litre. The increase is the fifth upward revision since July, as crude oil prices hover at record levels above US$80 a barrel. (AsiaOne)

Oct 1: Hotel room rates expected to go up by 25% in Q4. Hotel room rates in Singapore in the fourth quarter are expected to be 25 per cent higher than that of last year, according to industry players. (CNA)

Oct 3: The price of chickens has risen by 20 to 50 per cent here since last week, caused by the wholesale price hike from Malaysia, among the factors, according to media reports. (Bernama)

Oct 4: Queensway Shopping Centre, Sim Lim Square and sky-high rentals in Singapore. As the leases are expiring about now, get ready for a radical change in Sim Lim Square, the highest�rentals for the shops selling the lowest margin products ever. (C Net Asia)
Oct 19: SIA ups fuel surcharge by between $3 and $9. The new charges, which are between $3 and nearly $9 more than the current surcharges, will apply to tickets issued from Oct 24 and to both SIA and SilkAir flights. (TODAY)

Oct 20: Price of flour up 30%. The price of flour has increased again, but this time it has gone up by thirty percent. This is the biggest ever hike, according to industry watchers. From January, it will cost 20 cents more to buy a loaf of bread. (CNA)

Oct 22: Caltex petrol, diesel prices up. AMERICAN oil company Chevron raised pump prices of its Caltex petrol and diesel by five cents a litre on Monday - the sixth increase since July and the second in about a fortnight. The others - Shell, ExxonMobil and Singapore Petroleum - are likely to do likewise in the coming days. Chevron’s move brings its pump prices to record levels. (Straits Times)

Oct 26: Private home prices up 8.3% in Q3. Singapore private home prices rose 8.3 percent between July and September to their highest level in a decade. (Asia One)

Oct 27: Prices of HDB resale flats keep accelerating. ‘As at end-September, the HDB resale price index has increased by about 11 per cent since the start of the year,’ the HDB said. For five-room flats, the median resale price in Queenstown is the highest at $603,000, followed by Marine Parade at $560,000 and Bukit Merah at $530,000. (Straits Times)

Oct 28: Singapore raises noodle prices. Starting Nov. 1, the price of noodles in Singapore will increase 20 percent to 30 per cent, the Singapore Noodles Manufacturers’ Association announced on Sunday. (AHN News)

Oct 30: ERP rates going up again for third time this year. Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates are going up again for the third time this year. There will also be new gantries erected. From November 5, motorists will pay $3.50 from 7:30am to 8:00am. The amount charged goes up to $5.00 between 8:30am and 9:00am. This is a $1.50 increase in the 8:30am to 9:00am period since February this year. (CNA)

Oct 30: 100 bakeries to raise bread prices by up to 20%. OVER 100 bakeries have indicated that they will be raising bread prices by up to 20 per cent, following a jump in flour prices. (Straits Times)

Nov 2: Expect steep hikes in tyre, wheel and battery prices. BESIDES record fuel prices and higher Electronic Road Pricing rates, motorists must prepare to pay more for batteries, tyres and wheels. The Singapore Motor Tyre Dealers Association is preparing to announce sizeable price hikes, with battery prices going up by as much as 50 to 70 per cent. Tyre prices will go up by 20 to 30 per cent, and wheels by 10 to 20 per cent, the association’s assistant secretary, Mr Robert Tng, told The Straits Times. (Straits Times)

Nov 5: A TRIP to the supermarket will cost more now than it did at the beginning of the year. A Straits Times check on a random basket of basic goods sold at supermarkets here revealed price increases in almost every category, from fresh chicken to coffee and milk formula. (Straits Times)

Nov 5: Prices for Singapore Petroleum Company Limited (SPC) motor gasoline across all three grades and diesel will be increased by seven cents per litre. (SPC)

Nov 8: Raffles Place retailers face space crunch, soaring rents. A recent study by property consultant Cushman & Wakefield found rent rises of up to 24 per cent over the past two years in the area. (Straits Times)

Nov 23: Singapore’s October CPI up 3.6% on-year, 1.3% on-month. Singapore’s October consumer prices rose 3.6 percent from a year earlier after an increase in the Goods and Services Tax (GST), government data showed on Friday. (CNA)

Nov 29: Pump prices increase by 5 cents. All four oil companies — Shell, Caltex, ExxonMobil and Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC) — have increased pump prices for petrol and diesel by five cents. In the past 11 months, the price of petrol has shot up nine times and twice just in this month alone. (CNA)

Nov 29: Second Link toll charges to go up next year. VEHICLES from Singapore crossing into Johor via the Second Link Expressway will have to pay higher tolls from Jan 1, the Malaysian government announced yesterday. Passenger cars using the Second Link route will have to pay RM10.80 (S$4.60) next year, compared with RM8.40 now. (Asia One)

Dec 9: Price of luncheon meat soar, from $1 to as high as $3. Prices of luncheon meat have been on the rise since August when the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) rejected and destroyed a consignment of canned pork products from two food processing plants in China. (New Paper)

Dec 10: ComfortDelgro raises taxi fares. Commuters will pay between 18 per cent and 49 per cent more for a taxi ride home from the city from 5pm to midnight. (Straits Times) (CNA)

Dec 11: SCHOOL bus fares will go up by at least $5 to $10 in January, sparked by the increase in diesel prices in recent months. (Straits Times)

Dec 14: Singapore’s second-largest taxi operator SMRT will be raising its fares from next Friday, December 21. The changes are in line with the adjustments made by market leader ComfortDelGro which will be increasing fares from December 17. (CNA)

Dec 14: Hike in POSB coins charge excessive. “IN THE past, whenever I made a deposit or withdrawal in coins, I paid $5 in service charge for every $500. Now, I have to pay $15 for every $500. So if I changed $1,000 into coins, I would lose $30.” (ST Forum Page)

Dec 14: Adjustment rate for housing loan changed unilaterally. “This unilateral change in adjustment rate is an increase in effective interest on the loan, and it is done without changing the loan interest rates. Is it fair for banks to offer adjustment rates as a ‘feature’ to woo customers but, six months into the loan, unilaterally reduce the benefits of the feature?” (ST Forum Page)

Dec 14: Hike in luggage surcharge wasn’t publicized. “When they were at the check-in counter, they were informed that the overweight charge was $20, not $8, and if they did not pay up they would not get their boarding passes. They had no choice but to pay.” (ST Forum Page)

Dec 20: Potong Pasir to raise S&C charges. THE opposition-held Potong Pasir ward is raising its service and conservancy (S&C) charges for the first time in a decade. Residents there will pay between $2.50 and $8 more a month, depending on the size of their HDB flat. (Straits Times)

Dec 20: Expect to pay more for food from next month. SINGAPOREANS should brace themselves for a sharp hike in food prices starting from New Year’s Day, which could affect anything from curry puffs to ice cream. (Asia One)
Dec 24: Singapore’s Nov consumer prices up 4.2% year-on-year. Singapore’s consumer prices rose faster-than-expected in November. The consumer price index - a non-core measure of costs for goods and services - rose 4.2 percent from a year earlier, after rising 3.6 percent in October. (CNA)

Dec 28: Electricity tariffs to go up. Highest since 2001. From next month (Jan 2008), electricity tariffs will go up nearly 6 per cent, to 22.62 cents per kilowatt-hour (kwh). (Straits Times)

2007: HDB ups valuation and administrative fees for valuation report of flats. This is to include the new 7% GST. (link)

 

[khunking]

Pre-Election Track Record

Quote:

Aug 24:

‘With rents rising, and some retailers not passing on the GST hike until later, we expect CPI inflation to continue to climb, probably close to 3 per cent towards year-end,’ said Citigroup economist Chua Hak Bin.

“Consumers Association of Singapore president Yeo Guat Kwang, who is also MP for Aljunied GRC, said if prices go up because of supply and demand conditions, that cannot be helped: ‘What we need to ensure is that price adjustments are fair.

‘So far, we haven’t seen a phenomenon of businesses profiteering from the GST rise,’ said Mr Yeo, who is the deputy chairman of the Committee Against GST Profiteering.

‘Most importantly, prices of basic necessities have remained stable.’

(Straits Times, Aug 24, 2007)

Other reports:

A relentless spiral by Littlespeck. (link)

CASE survey. (link)

Govt spells out fees to be frozen. (link) (link)
2008

Jan 3: Second Link tolls to go up from Feb 1. The tolls for all motorists at Tuas Second Link will be raised by between 10 cents and S$4.40 from 1 February. Motorcyclists will need to pay 10 cents more than the current toll of 60 cents. Cars will be tolled S$4.60, while vans and small lorries will be charged S$10.50. The largest jump is for big lorries, which will have to pay S$21 – S$4.40 more than the current S$16.60. (Channel NewsAsia)

Jan 08: Motorists to face five new ERP gantries. MOTORISTS can expect to pay more over the next few months to use the roads when five new ERP gantries are up, many in the heart of residential areas. (Straits Times) (Straits Times)

Jan 14: Prices of CNY goodies to go up. BE PREPARED to spend 10 per cent to 20 per cent more on foodstuffs this Chinese New Year. (Straits Times)

Jan 15: Inflation in S’pore may hit 6.5% this month. CONSUMER prices in Singapore may surge a staggering 6.5 per cent this month, bringing full- year average inflation to an equally eye-popping 5 per cent, according to Citigroup. (Straits Times)

Jan 18: Lunar New Year dinner prices set to rise by at least 10 per cent. Prices for restaurant dinners are set to rise by at least 10 per cent. (CNA)

Jan 23: Prices of suckling pigs double due to supply shortage in China. The prices of suckling pigs have doubled recently due to a drop in supply from China, and a 5kg pig is going for as much as S$180. (CNA)

Jan 24: Singapore’s consumer price index (CPI) … rose 4.4 per cent last month from a year earlier, with transport contributing the most. (TODAY)

Jan 25: Resale HDB flat prices up 30% above valuation in Q4. BUYERS of resale Housing Board flats found themselves paying $22,000 above the valuation from October to December - a whopping 30 per cent increase more than the previous quarter. (Straits Times)


Jan 29: ERP rates to go up by S$0.50 at certain gantries from Feb 4. Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates are set to go up by S$0.50 starting 4 February, according to the Land Transport Authority. (CNA)

Jan 30: ERP rates, more gantries to go up - but road tax cut by 15%. Minister Lim said 16 new gantries will go on between April and November, bringing the total number in operation to 71. This is just the start. The base ERP rate will be upped from $1 to $2, with the increments in $1 instead of the current 50 cents. To make ERP more effective in a rising affluent community, these changes will be made gradually. (Straits Times)

Jan 30: MediShield premiums to go up for better cover. YEARLY premiums for basic MediShield insurance are set to increase - by about $120 for most people - to ensure that subsidised patients saddled with big hospital bills will get better payouts. (Straits Times)

Jan 30: Prime Taxis to raise fares from March. AFTER holding out for over a month, Singapore’s smallest cab operator, Prime Taxis, will raise its fares to come in line with other companies here. (Straits Times)

Jan 30: Prices for tickets for all Cathay cineplexes to go up on Jan 31. Expect to pay up to $10.50 on a weekend. (TODAY)

Feb 02: Prices of vegetables are up between 5 and 10 per cent because higher oil prices. YOUR shopping basket will be a little more expensive this year, no thanks to a rise in vegetable prices. (The New Paper)

Feb 4: Singapore inflation may exceed 5 percent this year - PM Lee. Inflation in the city-state could accelerate to 5 percent this year after rising 2.1 percent in 2007 given rising commodity prices worldwide, the Business Times newspaper quoted Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as saying. (Forbes)

Feb 04: Businesses say new ERP gantries may increase operating costs. The rise in Electronic Road Pricing and increase in the number of ERP gantries is worrying at least one business - the couriers. (CNA)

Feb 14: Varsities up tuition fees by 4% to 20%. TUITION fees at the three local universities will go up by between 4 per cent and 20 per cent for the new batch of undergraduates entering in August. (Straits Times)

Feb 26: INFLATION accelerated last month to a 26-year high of 6.6 per cent with housing, food and transport costs registering steep increases over the past year. (Straits Times)

Mar 3: Caltex increases petrol and diesel pump prices. The company increased all grades of petrol by 4 cents per litre at 11am on Monday. Its Regular 95 petrol is now priced at S$2.046 a litre, Regular 98 at S$2.12 and Premium 98 petrol is S$2.286 per litre before discount. (CNA)

March 10: Park in Orchard area? It’ll cost you even more. Parking fees have gone up at 18 out of 20 malls, in one case by 36 per cent. (Straits Times, AsiaOne)

March 12: Fishball prices increase 20% due to rising cost of raw ingredients. Retailers said the prices of fishballs have risen by 20 per cent since last July due to rising cost of raw ingredients. (CNA)

March 17: Price of Chinese herbs to increase by 10%-20%. The price of Chinese herbs is set to increase by 10-20 percent. (CNA)

March 18: Barely two weeks after an increase in pump prices … all four petrol companies raised prices yesterday. Petrol and diesel prices went up by four cents and five cents per litre respectively, with the exception of Shell’s V-Power, which went up by three cents, and Caltex Platinum Techron, which remained unchanged. Regular 98-octane petrol at all four petrol chains now costs $2.160 a litre, while diesel is $1.613 a litre, before discounts. (TODAY)

March 19: Cost of electricity to go up from April as oil prices rise. Electricity tariffs will go up by an average of 1.26 cents (S$0.0126) per kilowatt starting 1 April. (CNA)

March 25: Singapore’s CPI up 6.5 pct year-on-year in February. Singapore’s consumer price index (CPI) jumped 6.5 percent in February from a year earlier, after gaining a 25-year high of 6.6 percent in January. (Trading Markets)

March 25: Singapore inflation stays at 26-year high. Prices of meat and poultry, cooking oils and dairy products clocked double-digit gains, while rice, cereal and fruit cost almost 10 per cent more than they did last year. High oil prices also made themselves felt in electricity bills and at petrol pumps. Indeed, transport costs jumped 9.6 per cent, boosted also by higher taxi fares and car prices. (Straits Times)

March 25: Prices of coffee, milk, sugar rise. In the past six months, the price of a 40-sachet bag of Nescafe 3-in-1 Regular Coffeemix has risen by 14 to 19 per cent across most major supermarkets. It costs $5.20 at Cold Storage and NTUC FairPrice. Super 3-in-1 Coffeemix is up 5 to 9 per cent, and now costs $4.95 at Cold Storage and $4.80 at NTUC FairPrice. (Straits Times)

March 26: Price of paper up by as much as 40%. The price of paper around the world has gone up by as much as 40 percent over the past year. This has caused the price of recycled paper to increase by 100 percent. (CNA)

March 28: NETS revises pricing for NETS CashCard. Consumers are going to have pay more for their NETS CashCard come May, as it will include the cost of the CashCard as well. (CNA)

March 29: Prices of rice rise. FairPrice raises price of its house brand varieties after Thai rice jumps 30% overnight. A 5kg bag of FairPrice Thai White Fragrant Rice now costs $5.30, up from $4.70, and a 10kg bag of Double FairPrice Thai Hom Mali Rice now goes for $17.90, up from $16.25. (Straits Times)


April 5: FairPrice ups price for one premium rice brand. SINGAPORE‘S biggest supermarket chain, NTUC FairPrice, on Friday hiked the price of one of its in-house brands of premium rice. The rise is NTUC’s second in as many weeks: It hiked prices of three other in-house brands of rice by between 60 cents and $1.65 last week. (Straits Times)

April 23: Singapore’s March inflation rate up 6.7% on-year. The CPI for the first quarter of this year was 6.6 percent higher compared with the same quarter of previous year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI in March was 0.3% higher compared with February. Singapore’s inflation rate has been hovering at its highest level in 26 years. (CNA)


April 23: Pump prices up across all brands. THE OTHER oil companies have all followed Caltex’s move to raise pump prices here. ExxonMobil, Singapore Petroleum Co and Shell on Wednesday upped petrol prices by three cents a litre and diesel by five cents. The latest pump price adjustment is the 10th consecutive increase since July last year - 11th if the GST-triggered increase on July 1, 2007 were to be included. (Straits Times)


April 25: Sharp hike in kindergarten fees. SOME 1,500 students attending the seven PAP Community Foundation (PCF) kindergartens in Woodlands will see their fees shoot up by 30 to 100 per cent. (TODAY, April 25.)


May 3: Rice and cooking oil lead price rise. Yes, the price of rice is going up. But so too are the prices of cooking oil and other items such as instant noodles. (Straits Times)

May 3: SIZZLING HOT: Cooking oil prices on the boil. In the last two months, retail prices have jumped between 9per cent and 56 per cent, depending on the brand.. (Straits Times)


May 9: Expect to pay higher electricity bills. Soaring crude oil prices drove the benchmark market price of electricity to a record last month, and there is not much relief in sight. (Straits Times)


May 16: Caltex pump prices up. Prices at Caltex were increased as of 10.00am today. Prices of Silver, Gold and Platinum petrol grades went by $0.02 to $2.136, $2.210 and $2.336 respectively. (AsiaOne) (TODAY)

May 19: Food operators to charge more for home deliveries. A Straits Times check with 25 food-delivery services found that more than half have increased their menu prices by at least a dollar in the last few months. Five have also upped their delivery fees, while three have increased their minimum order amount. (AsiaOne)


May 23: Singapore inflation rate hits new 26-year high of 7.5% in April. Singapore’s annual inflation rate rose to a new 26-year high of 7.5 percent in April as food, housing and transportation costs soared and is now a risk to the economy, the government said on Friday. (CNA)

May 24: Pump prices up for second time in a week. The latest jump - the 12th consecutive increase since last July - was sparked when oil giant Shell upped petrol prices by five cents a litre and diesel by seven cents at 5pm on Thursday. (Straits Times)


June 5: Poultry prices to rise due to higher transportation costs. The cost of every kilogramme of duck to go up by five cents. The price of chicken products is also expected to increase. (CNA)


June 7: Singapore consumers to feel knock-on effects. THE fuel price hike in Malaysia is going to bite Singaporeans soon, and hard. Prices of a range of goods are set to go up as the cost of trucking them in rises, and fresh food tops the list. (Straits Times)

June 7: Singapore’s poor turn to temples to fill bellies. Many Singaporeans increasingly turning to free meals at temples to fill their stomachs, as surging global commodity prices hurt, even in a country that is one of the richest in Asia. (Reuters)

June 7: Coach fares to Malaysia up. The Express Bus Agencies Association (EBAA), which accounts for six in 10 buses heading across the Singapore border, has raised its fuel and insurance surcharges from a previous flat fee of $3, to between $5 and $16 — that’s up to five times more — depending on your destination. (TODAY)

June 11: Up prices of eggs and some vegetables. The prices of eggs and some vegetables have jumped at wet markets across the island, according to a Straits Times check. This comes barely a week after Malaysia - Singapore’s biggest food supplier - trimmed domestic fuel subsidies. (Straits Times)

June 18: ERP rates in CBD to go up, 5 new gantries added. About half of existing ERP gantries islandwide will see their rates increase from July 7. (CNA) (Straits Times)

June 19: Housebrand rice prices up. The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) has found that prices for housebrands rose between 14 and58 per cent last month. The most dramatic jump was for Cold Storage’s First Choice Thai Fragrant Rice: :From between $8.75 and $9.10 for a 5kg-pack, to $13.80. (TODAY)

June 25: Pump prices up for 13th time since last July. PUMP prices have risen again, with petrol going up by five cents a litre and diesel, 10 cents.This latest increase, the 13th consecutive rise since last July, started when oil giant Shell raised rates at 4pm yesterday. By evening, Caltex and ExxonMobil had followed suit.(Straits Times) (TODAY)

June 25: Electricity tariffs to rise 4.98% from next quarter. Electricity tariffs will go up by 4.98 per cent or by 1.19 cents per kilo watt per hour (kWh) for all households from the next quarter, beginning July 1. (CNA)


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[khunking]

Khaw's secrets to looking young

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</TD></TR><TR><TD>Health @ AsiaOne
Khaw's secrets to looking young
"There's no elixir or no secret recipe. (Although) technology does help." -ST

Fri, Mar 12, 2010
The Straits Times
HEALTH Minister Khaw Boon Wan was asked for his secret to looking young by Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Lam Pin Min in Parliament on Tuesday.
Giving a bashful grin, Mr Khaw, 58, said: 'There's no elixir or no secret recipe. Technology does help.
'I colour my hair but, of course, no botox. But I think the mind is important and attitude to life, so on.
'And if you go back to when I quoted Lao-tzu, you know, what is life all about, it is never about ourselves, it is about others and if you lead a life in that direction, whatever the physical form, I don't think it matters.'
This article was first published in The Straits Times.

For more The Straits Times stories, click here.
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[Conqueror]

The 4 Million Dollars Question

Sorry hor, I thought it was already 4 million plus for the president's salary. Everyone has been talking about this fiasco of being a clean 'garmen'. No wonder people from elsewhere commented that Singaporeans are a dumb lot, what can I say ?

I don't think the election is fair when I heard that the ballot boxes can be 'magically' replaced with something else from nowhere to make them win again. We need an international body to supervise the whole election process.

 

[khunking]

Singapore consumer prices climb 5% on transportation, food cost

Singapore consumer prices climb 5% on transportation, food cost

<TR><TD valign="top">Written by Bloomberg </TD></TR><TR><TD class=createdate valign="top">Wednesday, 23 March 2011 13:03

Singapore’s inflation held above 4.5% for a third month as the cost of transportation, food and housing climbed, sustaining pressure on the central bank to join regional policy makers in damping inflation.

The consumer price index increased 5% last month from a year earlier, a Department of Statistics statement showed today. That compares with an inflation rate of 5.5% in January. The median estimate of 18 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 5.4% gain. Prices fell 0.1% from January, without adjusting for seasonal factors.
Asian central banks from India to South Korea and Thailand have tightened monetary policy this month as rising oil and commodity prices threaten to fuel inflation. Singapore last month raised its inflation forecast for 2011, and economists from Standard Chartered Plc to Citigroup Inc. predict the central bank will revalue the currency or let it appreciate faster at the policy review in April.

“Inflationary risks are certainly rising,” Irvin Seah, an economist at DBS Group Holdings in Singapore, said before the report. “Food and fuel prices will surely become more prominent factors in the inflation equation going forward. And that should prompt further monetary action from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.”



The central bank, which uses the exchange rate as its main tool to manage inflation, revalued the currency in April 2010 and said in October it would steepen and widen the currency’s trading band while continuing to seek a “modest and gradual appreciation.”

CURRENCY CLIMBS
Consumer prices will probably rise 4% this year, according to the median estimate in a survey of 20 economists by the central bank released this month. Consumer prices may climb 3% to 4% this year, up from a previous forecast of 2% to 3%, the government said Feb. 17.

The Singapore dollar has gained more than 10% against the U.S. currency in the past year to be the best performing currency in Asia excluding Japan.

The Singapore dollar may strengthen to $1.23 versus the U.S. currency by the end of 2011, economists surveyed by the central bank predicted. It traded at $1.2644 a dollar at 12:20 p.m. local time.
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[khunking]

Four essential qualities to be a good MP, leader (PAP Style)


Singapore

Home > Breaking News > Singapore > Story


Mar 30, 2011

Four essential qualities to be a good MP, leader

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Dr Ng, who introduced three more new PAP candidates to the media on Wednesday afternoon at the party headquarters, said the PAP held nearly 200 tea sessions with over 260 individuals over the last four years. -- PHOTO: ST

View more photos http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20110330/photo-2.jpghttp://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20110330/photo-3.jpg

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IN ITS extensive search for candidates to field in the coming polls, the People's Action Party looks for four essential qualities to be a good MP and government leader.
Education Minister Ng Eng Hen, who is also the party's Organising Secretary (Special Duties), said the candidates must:
Be an activist.
They must be committed to serve and are grounded in reality. They must also have the ability to put plans into actions to serve the people.
Have a heart for Singapore
While the candidates do not have to agree with the party's policies, they must believe that Singapore can improve, and are able to connect with the hopes and difficulties of Singaporeans
Have guts for Singapore
Candidates must be committed and stay the course, not wilt under pressure and succumb to populist sentiments. They must be able to think long-term.
Be trustworthy
As MPs and office holders, as people in positions of power and influence, candidates must be trusted to always make the right decision for the good of Singapore and never for personal gain.
Dr Ng, who introduced three more new PAP candidates to the media on Wednesday afternoon at the party headquarters, said the PAP held nearly 200 tea sessions with over 260 individuals over the last four years.
He said the candidates were assessed over a period of time, some for years, which saw them changing jobs, getting married, pregnant and through deliveries, said Dr Ng.
After thousands of man-hours spent on these exhaustive efforts, just over 20 candidates were selected.

 

[khunking]

Making life tougher

Rocketting prices

Making life tougher

Inflation, a global problem, is hitting ‘grow-at-all-costs’ Singapore harder than most advanced countries. By Seah Chiang Nee.
Apr 2, 2011

(Synopsis: inflation – set to reach 6% soon – has seemingly been acting like a runaway bus, cutting into people’s hard work and savings.)

The rising cost of living is fast becoming the second biggest concern – next to jobs and earnings – among Singaporeans, who will go to the polls this year.
Last week they received more bad news. Electricity costs will rise by 6.5% this month and a major oil firm will put up petrol prices at the pump.
These are the latest of a string of price increases that have been ploughing through the city heartland, often uncontrollably, and a few of them by substantial margins.
The whole thing is now like dominos going down, with one leading price hike to another.
For example, more cafes and restaurants are charging diners up to S$1 for a glass of water, and one bicycle shop in Tampenis is reportedly charging cyclists 50cents for pumping air into tyres.
In the heartland, it sometimes takes on laughable proportions, with some hawkers imposing an additional charge on customers who want a bit more sauce, ketchup or chilli.
The most damaging are big ticket items like healthcare and homes, public transport, cars, petrol, and of course, foodstuff.
Few things – big or small – are spared for long. Sooner or later rentals will go up and vendors will charge more to make up for that.
A random look at the press showed a wide range of products and services being affected – from school bus fees to baby food, from car insurance to curry puffs.
In the past, the Government had managed inflation well, keeping costs very low despite the island’s dependency on the outside world for oil, commodities and food.
But in the past five years (except for the recession), inflation has made life tough for the average wage earner.
A big factor was the sharp rises in energy, commodity and food price worldwide.
Some Singaporeans attribute the rising prices to the government’s “grow at all costs” strategy and its mass intake of foreigners within a short period, which strained resources.
“I think a large part of the inflation in Singapore is induced by government policy,” said Leong Wai Ho, senior regional economist, Barclays Capital.
He was referring to the COE system, in which a person has to bid for a Certificate of Entitlement (with a 10-year life span) before he can buy a new car in Singapore.
Currently, the COE for a car ranges from S$40,000 to S$60,000 depending on capacity, after rising to incredible levels.
“If you take that away, inflation will be Singapore is much more manageable,” Leong added.
A writer said: “The cost of living is growing, fuelled by demand from an enlarged populace for scarce resources, as well as higher government taxes and fees.”
During Singapore’s brief post-independence history, residents of this small island, which has few natural resources, have been conditioned to deal with the occasional price spasm.
When times were good, these could be shrugged away. This year, it appears harder to limit the damage than before.
The current crisis appears more fundamental and lasting.
In fact, it may become a structured feature in cosmopolitan Singapore.
I believe that many aspects may have been due to our ambition to become a metropolis for the rich and talented.
This means prices are no longer determined only by supply and demand.
With the world’s highest increase in the proportion of millionaires, and massive foreign funds coming in, Singapore has been transformed for good.
People can forget about prices falling back to pre-inflation levels, baring a calamity.
The plague of 5%-5.5% inflation is eating into people’s salaries and savings.
“I’m worried because my bank savings, which fetch only interest of 0.15%, are losing out,” a housewife lamented. “When you save, you lose; don’t invest, even worse.”
Those who have mandatory retirement savings will be similarly affected.
Their CPF (Central Provident Fund) ordinary account pays them only 2.5% a year.
“With this inflation, all citizens’ CPF will depreciate in value before we can even use it.
“The payout (on retirement) will probably be enough only for daily coffee expenses,” a surfer said.
A chief investment officer commented: “We are likely to see increasing inflationary pressures in the quarters and years to come.”
Singaporeans are particularly concerned about the possible decline of their CPF money which must follow any prolonged inflation.
The fear is very real and strong in many families.
Will the public’s concern affect the election results? I believe it will to some extent.
TODAY newspaper, which recently surveyed heartland voters on this subject, reported:
“From basic necessities to hawker meals, from holidays to that new car, from healthcare bills to expenses related to starting and raising a family, it seems that Singaporeans are certainly feeling the pinch of higher prices.”
It found 40% of poorer Singaporeans (income from nil to S$2,000 a month) replied that the rising living costs would affect how they would vote.
Among those earning S$2,001-S$6,000, six in 10 said the issue would influence how they cast their ballot, TODAY reported.
Some older citizens, who are not benefiting from Singapore’s dazzling plan to become a world class city, are unhappy. “Give us back our older days” is their common cry.
The idea is less attractive to the younger set, which has adapted well to new technologies, although still trying hard to cope with the high prices.

(This was published in The Star, Malaysia)

 

[khunking]

SM Goh: How to secure Singapore's future

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</TD></TR><TR><TD>News @ AsiaOne
SM Goh: How to secure Singapore's future
Maintaining high quality of leadership is one of seven key strategies. -RazorTV

Sat, Apr 02, 2011
RazorTV
SINGAPORE'S next leadership change will be the most crucial, said Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.
Getting the right leadership was important given the challenges future leaders of Singapore will have, he said at a dialogue with the Singapore Polytechnics Graduates' Guild.
He highlighted 7 strategies that will help Singapore stay competitive in the future. Students and alumni also posed questions to SM Goh at the two-hour dialogue.
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[seebaysong]

Re: Coroner's inquiry set for fatal hit-and-run accident

This case is a water shed case for BG Yeo since it concerns Sporean lives lost ... the least he cld hv done is to insist on extradition of the %#$*@#& !

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="99%" align=center><TBODY><TR><TD>[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Coroner's inquiry set for fatal hit-and-run accident [/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD width="83%">[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Posted on : 2010-02-24 | Author : dpa
News Category : Asia[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]</TD><TD vAlign=bottom width="17%">[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD>[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
[/FONT]<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=2 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Singapore - A Singapore state coroner has called some 50 witnesses in an inquiry into two fatal hit-and-run accidents involving a Romanian envoy, a media report said Wednesday. In January, a state counsel had identified Silviu Ionescu, 49, then the highest-ranking Romanian diplomat posted in the city-state, as the driver of the embassy car which killed a Malaysian man and injured two other people on December 15.
Ionescu denied the allegations, claiming the car had been stolen. He left Singapore for Romania after the accidents.
The coroner said the inquest was scheduled for next week, the online edition of Straits Times newspaper reported.
Singapore has demanded Ionescu attend the inquiry, and asked the Romanian authorities for help.
But Romania's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said it could not "compel him (Ionescu) to observe a certain line of conduct," because he had been suspended from his diplomatic duties during criminal investigations undertaken by the Romanian authorities.
The ministry said it would allow the embassy driver, Marius Trusca, who has diplomatic immunity, to testify at the inquest.
Due to the high number of witnesses, the inquiry was expected to run 16 days, the newspaper said.
Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo on Monday told parliament that Ionescu could not be forced to attend the inquiry.
"The inquiry will take place with or without Ionescu," he said.
Yeo warned against overreacting in the case, saying that "there is due process in Singapore, there is due process in Romania."
"Let us take this one step at a time and not speculate, because acting in haste or always over-speculating may be injurious to our own case itself," the minister said. [/FONT]
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[khunking]

S'pore prepared for ageing population: Lim Boon Heng

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=640 align=center><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=640><TBODY><TR><TD width=414><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=414><TBODY><TR vAlign=bottom><TD height=42>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This story was printed from channelnewsasia.com [/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD height=4 background=/cna/print/images/line.gif>

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<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=600 align=center><TBODY><TR><TD width=44>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Title[/FONT]</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]S'pore prepared for ageing population: Lim Boon Heng [/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By[/FONT]</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Date[/FONT]</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]02 April 2011 1620 hrs (SST) [/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]URL[/FONT]</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1120290/1/.html [/FONT]</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE border=1 cellSpacing=5 borderColor=#cccccc borderColorLight=#cccccc borderColorDark=#cccccc cellPadding=3 width=600 align=center><TBODY><TR><TD>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]SINGAPORE: Minister in Charge of Ageing Issues Lim Boon Heng said Singapore has prepared itself to take on the challenges and capitalise on the opportunities of an ageing population.

Mr Lim said businesses can play a bigger role in delivering goods and services that seniors will demand.

He was speaking at the launch of the 50 plus Expo as part of the Annual Active Ageing Carnival.

Now into its third year, the Expo organised by the Council for Third Age, aims to create a market place for the silver industry and mature consumers.

Stakeholders said the market is growing but often under served. But this year, the event has managed to attract more than 120 exhibitors, among them are about 60 new exhibitors, to the Expo.

The exhibition features products tailored specifically for the silver segment in areas such as health, beauty and fitness.

It also features the "My Life, My Home" Exhibition that comes in the form of two showflats - equipped with the latest assistive devices and practical solutions that can help older Singaporeans age comfortably and independently within their own homes.

Mr Lim said: "As the population ages, we do expect that more and more people will need help in different aspects of everyday activities. But at the same time, they will also be largely healthy and mobile, have discretionary income and want to lead active lives. This represents possibly a huge opportunity for businesses."

-CNA/ac

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[khunking]

Re: Coroner's inquiry set for fatal hit-and-run accident

I absolutely agree with you. The latest proceedings indicate that the accused could be acquitted.

This case is a water shed case for BG Yeo since it concerns Sporean lives lost ... the least he cld hv done is to insist on extradition of the %#$*@#& !