Tuesday, May 23, 2017 – 11:40
This author's mum used to run a brothel in Keong Saik Rd
Others
No reports of Singaporeans injured in Manchester bomb attack: MFA
There have been no reports of Singaporeans directly affected or injured in the bomb attack at Manchester Arena, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a media statement on Tuesday (May 23).
The explosion has killed 19 people and injured 50 others so far when it took place at the arena where US singer Ariana Grande had been performing.
Singapore said that it “strongly condemns the bomb attack,” expressed its condolences to the bereaved families, and wished the injured a swift recovery.
MFA added that the ministry and the Singapore High Commission in London have reached out to Singaporeans who are e-registered in Manchester. The Singapore High Commission will also work closely with Manchester police to monitor the situation.
The ministry advised Singaporeans who are in the United Kingdom to inform their family and friends that they are safe.
Those who need urgent consular assistance should contact the Singapore High Commission in London or MFA Duty Office at:
Singapore High Commission in London: +44 (0)207 235 8315/+44 (0) 771 034 8335, singhc_lon@mfa.sg
MFA Duty Office (24-hours): +65 63798800/8855, mfa_duty_office@mfa.gov.sg
Photos: Explosions at Ariana Grande concert in Manchester
minlee@sph.com.sg
Tuesday, May 23, 2017 – 11:23
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South Korea's ex-leader Park to make first court appearance in corruption trial
South Korea’s former leader Park Geun-hye makes her first public appearance on Tuesday since her arrest in March, standing trial on bribery charges over a corruption scandal that brought down her presidency.
Park faces more than 10 years in jail if found guilty of taking bribes from business leaders, one of the key accusations that led to her impeachment, making her the country’s first democratically elected leader to be removed from office.
Park has denied any wrongdoing and is expected to plead not guilty at the trial.
The first day of arguments on Tuesday comes two weeks after the election of President Moon Jae-in, who has promised to get tough on chaebol bosses who commit crimes, and has named a respected investigator to head the office prosecuting the former leader.
Park is expected to appear at the Seoul Central District Court at 0100 GMT with the friend she is accused of colluding with to solicit money, Choi Soon-sil. Choi has also rejected the bribery charges.
At the court hearing Park and Choi are likely to be reunited for the first time since the scandal erupted in public in late October, seated near each other as defendants.
It is Park’s first appearance since being arrested on March 31, three weeks after she was removed from office by a Constitutional Court ruling and after a warrant judge decided she posed a flight risk and was likely to tamper with evidence.
The controversy surrounding her secretive lifestyle and eccentric personality did not end with her departure from the presidential Blue House. An animal rights group has filed a complaint with the police against her for abandoning nine dogs she left behind in the presidential compound.
Media reports have said she spent her time in her prison cell reading the English dictionary and keeping away from the news available for inmates.
She is believed to have been kept away from the head of the Samsung conglomerates, Jay Y. Lee, one of the business leaders accused of paying into the funds set up to back Park’s policies.
Park’s lawyer did not respond to telephone calls and text messages seeking comment, and the Seoul Detention Center declined to comment citing the inmate’s privacy.
The Seoul Central District Court held a lottery last week for the 68 seats available for the public, drawing more than 500 people, most of them young people in their 20s and 30s.
Heo Go-eun, a 22-year-old university music major said she had cut her classes that day to enter the lottery.
“This will remain a page in history and I wanted to see for myself Park on trial,” said Heo, adding she had participated in the candlelight rallies last year that drew millions of South Koreans to the street in peaceful protests.
“So many people are just happy Park has been impeached, that she has already paid the price for her crimes but this is just the beginning.”
Tuesday, May 23, 2017 – 10:48
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New flyover at Braddell Road to open Jun 11 following repeated delays
SINGAPORE: Following repeated delays, a new flyover connecting motorists from Lorong 6 Toa Payoh to the Braddell Underpass has been completed. It will open on Jun 11 at 6am, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced on Monday (May 22).
The structure will allow motorists travelling from Lorong 6 Toa Payoh to connect directly to Upper Serangoon Road and Bartley Road via the Braddell Underpass without having to join the Central Expressway (CTE)-bound or Bishan Street 11-bound traffic at Braddell Road.
As part of the project, a stretch of Braddell Road between Toa Payoh North Flyover and the CTE, has also been widened from dual three-lanes to dual five-lanes.
Construction, which got underway in 2012, had been expected to be completed by end-2015. However, the project ran into delays after its first contractor ran into financial trouble and after the Manpower Ministry issued a stop-work order at the worksite as recently as February following the discovery of several safety violations.
An illustration of the new flyover at Braddell Road. (Photo: LTA)
With the new flyover in place, motorists heading towards the CTE or Bishan Street 11 should continue using the existing Toa Payoh North flyover, LTA said. It added that this segregation of traffic travelling towards different destinations will help smoothen traffic along Braddell Road.
LTA added that it plans to construct centre dividers along some stretches of Braddell Road. These road works can only be carried out after the flyover opening, and will be completed by end-June, it stated.
Troubled flyover at Braddell Road finally completed after series of setbacks
SINGAPORE — After a series of setbacks that saw its completion date being pushed back several times, the flyover at Braddell Road is finally completed and will be open to motorists at 6am on Sunday (June 11).
The new flyover will allow motorists travelling from Lorong 6 Toa Payoh to connect directly to Upper Serangoon Road and Bartley Road via the Braddell Underpass, without having to join the Central Expressway (CTE)-bound or Bishan Street 11-bound traffic at Braddell Road, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) in a news release on Monday (May 22).
(Map of the newly completed flyover at Braddell Road. Photo: LTA)
LTA said that motorists heading towards the CTE or Bishan Street 11 should continue using the existing Toa Payoh North flyover.
The transport agency added that, with the segregation of traffic towards different directions, it expects traffic to smoothen along Braddell Road.
The completion of the project also sees the widening of a stretch of Braddell Road between Toa Payoh North Flyover and the CTE, from dual three-lanes to dual five-lanes.
The project has met several bumps along the way. Originally slated to have been completed towards the tail end of 2015 by Hexagroup, LTA was led to terminate the contract in 2015 when the contractor met with financial difficulties.
Feng Ming Construction won the second tender for the project in 2015, but was unable to finish constructing the flyover by the end of 2016, which resulted in a further extension to March this year.
On Feb 23 this year, a stop-work order (SWO) was issued after safety inspectors from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) discovered several safety violations during a random spot check at the work site.
The SWO was subsequently lifted on March 8.
Braddell Flyover to open Jun 11 following repeated delays
SINGAPORE: Following repeated delays, a new flyover connecting motorists from Lorong 6 Toa Payoh to the Braddell Underpass has been completed. It will open on Jun 11 at 6am, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced on Monday (May 22).
The structure will allow motorists travelling from Lorong 6 Toa Payoh to connect directly to Upper Serangoon Road and Bartley Road via the Braddell Underpass without having to join the Central Expressway (CTE)-bound or Bishan Street 11-bound traffic at Braddell Road.
As part of the project, a stretch of Braddell Road between Toa Payoh North Flyover and the CTE, has also been widened from dual three-lanes to dual five-lanes.
Construction, which got underway in 2012, had been expected to be completed by end-2015. However, the project ran into delays after its first contractor ran into financial trouble and after the Manpower Ministry issued a stop-work order at the worksite as recently as February following the discovery of several safety violations.
An illustration of the new flyover at Braddell Road. (Photo: LTA)
With the new flyover in place, motorists heading towards the CTE or Bishan Street 11 should continue using the existing Toa Payoh North flyover, LTA said. It added that this segregation of traffic travelling towards different destinations will help smoothen traffic along Braddell Road.
LTA added that it plans to construct centre dividers along some stretches of Braddell Road. These road works can only be carried out after the flyover opening, and will be completed by end-June, it stated.
Oil up on expectations of extended, possibly deeper, output cut
Business
Oil prices rose on Monday, supported by reports that an OPEC-led supply cut would not only be extended into next year but might also be deepened in order to tightening the market and prop up prices.
Pump jacks pump oil at an oil field Buzovyazovskoye owned by Bashneft company north from Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia July 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File Photo
LONDON: Oil prices rose on Monday, bolstered by confidence that top exporters will this week agree to extend supply curbs, with suggestions the cuts could even be deepened.
Brent crude gained 48 cents o US$54.09 a barrel by 1043 GMT (6:43 a.m. ET), with U.S. light crude up 47 cents at US$50.80.
Both benchmarks have climbed more than 10 percent from lows earlier this month.
Prices have risen on expectations that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other producers, including Russia, will extend for another six or nine months a deal to cut supplies by 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd).
“The decision (to extend cuts) seems to be almost a done deal,” said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB Markets. “There seems to be a very high harmony in the group.”
The possibility of deepening the cuts was also being discussed ahead of a meeting of OPEC and other producers in Vienna on May 25, sources said.
But such talk could lead to disappointment if not approved, Commerzbank analysts said.
“If the cuts are merely to be extended, this is likely to be met at best with a neutral reception, if not even with disappointment,” Commerzbank said in a note.
Some analysts argue that deeper cuts are required to balance the market, pointing to a slight rise in OPEC exports this year.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects OPEC net oil export revenues to rise in 2017, partly because of “slightly higher” OPEC output.
Deeper cuts might, however, serve to stimulate U.S. shale production, said Schieldrop at SEB Markets.
“If you cut production, it’s no free lunch. You get something in the short term, but you get a backflip in the medium term, which is more production in 2018 and 2019,” he said.
Goldman Sachs says that the U.S. rig count for new oil production has jumped by 404 since May last year, representing a rise of 128 percent.
U.S. oil production has already climbed by 10 percent, or almost 900,000 bpd, since mid-2016 to 9.3 million bpd.
Iraqi oil minister Jabar al-Luaibi said in a speech on Monday that OPEC’s No.2 producer had met its share of production cuts, but added that the country remains ready to meet any global demand growth that may arise.
(Additional reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by David Goodman)
Taskforce set up to implement tighter regulations on formula milk manufacturers
Singapore
The taskforce will also ensure that more formula milk options are made available, encourage good practices in hospitals and build consumer awareness, says Senior Minister of State of Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon.
Prices of formula milk sold at a supermarket in Singapore in 2017. (Photo: David Bottomley)
SINGAPORE: The Government has set up a taskforce to put in place measures to address the rising prices of formula milk in Singapore.
“Our priority is to tighten regulations on labelling and advertising, facilitate imports of more formula milk options, raise public awareness, and encourage good practices in our hospitals,” said Senior Minister of State of Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon on Monday (May 22).
In a Facebook post, Dr Koh said he will be leading the taskforce which aims to put in place the key measures by the end of the year.
This comes after the Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) released its report earlier this month, which found that manufacturers spend heavily on research and development as well as marketing in order to make their products appear premium, and build consumer loyalty to their brands.
Such efforts have pushed up the wholesale prices of the products, resulting in higher prices at retail stores, said the competition watchdog.
In response to recommendations by the CCS, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) had said formula milk manufacturers will not be able to use nutrition and health claims, as well as images that make drinking formula milk look attractive, once changes to regulations take effect.
“The Government is now focused on the implementation of the measures,” said Dr Koh on Monday. “It will require close coordination among the public agencies and hospitals.”
The taskforce will include Senior Minister of State for Health Amy Khor, MPs Sun Xueling and Rahayu Mahzam, as well as senior paediatricians Associate Professor Marion Aw from the National University Hospital (NUH) and Dr Chan Yoke Hwee from KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH).
“Xueling and Rahayu’s views will be particularly invaluable as they themselves are mothers of young children, and understand well the sentiments of other parents on this issue,” wrote Dr Koh.
He added that the Health Promotion Board (HPB) would also launch a marketing campaign in the next two weeks to educate parents on making “more informed decisions about their children’s diet.”
Dr Koh said he hopes that the measures put in place would lead to more choices of formula milk, “and give parents greater peace of mind to select an option that best meets their family’s needs.”
