A senior Burmese government official blacklisted by the United States has been flown into Singapore for treatment after suffering a stroke. 74-year-old Aung Thaung lost consciousness on Wednesday evening, the Democratic Voice of Burma reported. He was rushed to a hospital in Naypyidaw, but was flown to Singapore on Thursday morning. Currently a lower house Member of Parliament for the Taungtha Township in …

The Singapore Democratic Party has voiced out about the recent train breakdown, challenging the wisdom of the ruling People’s Action Party in allowing the unregulated increase in Singapore’s foreign workforce which could have caused the train system to overload. Referring to its own population policy papers, the SDP called on the government to re-look its immigration policy, and prevent a mass influx “at …

A 21-year old college student, named only as Ilham, has been arrested by the Indonesian authorities for making a prank bomb threat against Singapore Airlines. The prankster is believed to be a student of a university in Serpong, South Tangerang, yesterday. According to news reports, Ilham allegedly created a Twitter account with the sole intention of pulling off the prank. …

If the Court of Appeal upholds a High Court decision not to appoint independent accountants to the  Aljunied-Houngang-Punngol East Town Council (AHPETC), the Housing and Development Board (HDB) may be brought in as co-plaintiffs alongside the Ministry of National Development (MND) for the case. The application was made of 22 June but it is still subject to the Court of Appeal’s grant. When …

On 2 June, The Online Citizen (TOC) reported that the 18 polyclinics in Singapore had increased its general consultation fees. (See here: “Polyclinics up consultation fees from 1 July“.) However, the two healthcare service providers who run the polyclinics have declined to provide details of the increases. In a report in the Straits Times on 9 July, it said that …

Singaporeans above 40 years old can tap on more funds in their Medisave accounts – up to S$900 – to pay for Integrated Shield Plan (IP) premiums when MediShield Life rolls out at the end of the year, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) today, 9 July. MediShield Life is the new compulsory national medical insurance offered by the government and will …

The Workers’ Party has released a party statement on the recent train disruption along the entire North-South and East-West MRT line, stating that the party is deeply worried over the 3.5 hour disruption of train service and the severe inconvenience caused to an estimated 250,000 commuters during the evening rush hour. The party recommended for a more rigorous enforcement of …

The evolving scandal involving Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak, who has been accused of pocketing money from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a strategic development company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia, hit closer to home yesterday. Some of the funds, the total which which allegedly amounted to US$700bil, has been said to be parked with a bank based in Singapore. The Monetary Authority …

By Howard Lee It would be fair to say that following the massive train breakdown on the evening of 7 July, public calls for SMRT CEO Desmond Kuek and Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew to step down would be futile. There has been no such precedence in Singapore, and coming so close to a general election, it would be highly …

In an opinion piece in the Straits Times on Thursday, 09 July, the newspaper’s Senior Transport Correspondent, Christopher Tan, says “apologies from the operator, regulator or the Government” over Tuesday’s island-wide MRT shut-down “are beginning to sound glib and hollow.” However, Mr Tan also suggested that “the Government should step in to help beef up resources required for SMRT to …