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Singapore’s highest-rated Channel 8 television drama The Little Nyonya (2008) might never have seen the light of day had it not been for its scriptwriter Ang Eng Tee.
Besides the fact that he had created and wrote the popular period epic, it was only because of his tireless lobbying that the series was green-lit for production.
Some of the executives reviewing scripts at the time had concerns that the Peranakan-themed show would be an ill fit for a predominantly Chinese-speaking audience, he recalls.
“There were many questions about whether a show like this would work for Channel 8 audiences, because we had never touched upon Peranakan culture in Chinese dramas before.
“If anything, they said that a show like this should have been written for Channel 5 instead. But I was insistent. The Peranakan culture is so uniquely Singaporean and something that all Singaporeans know, so why couldn’t that work for Channel 8 viewers too?” he tells The Straits Times in Mandarin during a two-hour interview.
His persistence paid off.
The 34-episode series starring Jeanette Aw as a long-suffering woman from a large Peranakan family in a story spanning 70 years was a mega hit for the broadcaster. Its finale peaked with a viewership rating of 33.8 per cent, attracting about 1.7 million viewers – a feat that the channel has not broken to this date.
Ang, 56, confesses that as much confidence as he had in the show, he was nonetheless surprised that it became such a phenomenon. “As the ratings climbed week on week, I felt both happy and worried. I was worried because I didn’t want audiences to feel like they wasted their time by the end of it,” he says.
Which is why, in hindsight, he would have given the show a happier ending if he had the chance to go back and change things.
The finale that had aired was a bittersweet one, in which the two romantic leads, played by Aw and Qi Yuwu, do not end up together.
He says: “I wrote the sadder ending because I felt that it was more realistic. But ultimately, TV dramas are made for audiences, so I would want to give them what they want. When you write a TV show, you always hope that your viewers enjoy it.”
He certainly has a good idea of the kind of content that connects with local audiences. Besides The Little Nyonya, Ang is also the man behind many of Channel 8’s most beloved and well-known dramas, including 1940s post-war drama Tofu Street (1996); family drama Holland V (2003); the Tiong Bahru-set sitcom 118 (2014 – 2015); and most recently, heartland drama Hero (2016 – 2017), which ended its run last month.
Dubbed by local Chinese media as “jinpai bianju”, or gold-standard scriptwriter in Mandarin, it is believed that with eight trophies to his name, he has racked up the most awards for Best Screenplay at the local Star Awards ceremony.
He is up for another one in April for Hero, a drama set in Dakota Crescent.
The show is also up for Best Drama, while its cast members Shaun Chen, Jesseca Liu, Andie Chen, Aileen Tan, Bonnie Loo, Paige Chua and Pan Lingling have swept nominations in the performance categories of Best Actor/Actress and Best Supporting Actor/Actress.
As much critical acclaim as it is getting now, the show, like The Little Nyonya, almost did not make it past the page either.
The idea for the series was rejected altogether when Ang submitted it for review, but he was so adamant about doing it that he made an official appeal.
He says: “We don’t get reasons for why a story gets rejected, but I suspect it is because Hero is a character-driven drama, so it feels a bit too small for a blockbuster series to cap off the year. But Dakota Crescent was about to be redeveloped. If we didn’t do this show then, we would never get the chance to do it.”
Residents had to move from the estate by the end of last year to make way for new developments.
Clearly, storytelling for him is more than just about entertainment. “I think it’s important that whenever we can, we tell stories about Singapore where we can showcase our rich culture and history. It wouldn’t be special if it was the kind of story that could be set anywhere else.”
This is the same reason he has never considered leaving Singapore to write TV dramas in China, Hong Kong or Taiwan, where the pay is likely more lucrative.
“I don’t think I would be able to do a good job elsewhere. I only know Singapore, so I think I can only write stories for Singaporeans.”
For someone who writes for a living, it is surprising to learn that he was a terrible student.
Ang, who grew up in a kampung in what is now Ang Mo Kio, was never interested in studying, whether it was at the now-defunct Fu Xing Primary School, Thomson Secondary School or San Yu High School.
When he was due to take the O-level examinations, he was so certain that he would fail mathematics that he chose to skip the paper altogether.
“I’d rather have it say ‘absent’ on my results sheet than have an F9,” he says, referring to the failing grade.
Even for his Chinese exam, he earned only a C grade. “Writing a script is not the same as writing a composition in Chinese class. Those compositions are too restrictive and formal,” he says.
It was a love for a story well told that drew him down the writing path.
When he was 16, he found himself addicted to wuxia novels by Chinese author Louis Cha. The more he read, the more he was inspired to start creating stories of his own.
He wrote his first piece of fiction a year later – a tale about a boy who had to guard a durian tree from potential thieves. The story was inspired by his own experience as a young child guarding the durian trees in his backyard, says Ang, who is the youngest of 10 children. His father had worked as a farmer and his mother, a construction worker.
He submitted the story to the local Chinese newspaper then known as Sin Chew Jit Poh, which accepted it for publication. As the story was long, it was serialised over three parts. Ang was paid $50.
“Our family was very poor, so that was the most money I had received at one time. I was so happy and I started to think that maybe I had some talent in this. I’m not sure how good the writing itself was, but I had imagination,” he says.
He started writing stories frantically after that, he says, submitting them to newspapers and magazines on a weekly basis. Many got published, which was all the encouragement he needed to keep going.
Rather than struggle through university, he took a screenwriting course organised by the then-Singapore Broadcasting Corporation instead in 1982. The course duration was only six months, but it was enough for him to get noticed by the bosses. He and a few coursemates were handpicked to join the station as assistant scriptwriters.
Over the next decade, he would work in a team setting, churning out episodic scripts with four other writers for a show at a time. None of those stories was his own though.
It was only when he was promoted to the role of story planner in 1993 that he could finally weave his own narratives. His first attempt, heist drama Larceny Of Love (1994), immediately gained attention as it earned former actor Xie Shaoguang his first acting prize, a Star Award for Best Supporting Actor, for playing a psychotic lover.
Ang says: “At that time, no one really knew who he was. But this show gave him the chance to showcase his acting skills and he became huge after that. The bosses then told me that they could trust me more with story planning.”
His career then followed a sharp upward trajectory as he created and wrote hit show after hit show.
From Tofu Street, about samsui women living in Chinatown; to The Journey: A Voyage (2013), about first-generation immigrants; and Holland V , about a family who operates a nasi lemak eatery in Holland Village, his works received both critical and commercial acclaim.
The hardest to write, he says, was The Price Of Peace (1997), the drama set in Japanese-occupied Singapore during World War II, as he felt stressed that he would not strike the right tone and offend war survivors. His fears were unfounded, however, as the show went on to win the Star Award for Best Drama, as well as acting gongs for Christopher Lee, Carole Lin and Hong Huifang.
As for ongoing series 118 II, the follow-up to the popular sitcom 118, the challenge is that scripts can be changed at the last minute, depending on what happens in the news. Ang stays in the know by keeping up with current affairs, but is also open to suggestions from the show’s cast.
Actress Sora Ma, 33, who plays Meizhen, a feisty girl who is constantly at odds with her mother-in-law (Pan), says: “He welcomes both good and bad comments and is very versatile and fast in writing characters and stories that leave long-lasting impressions.”
It might seem like good stories flow out of him with ease, but he points out that writing, in fact, requires plenty of discipline.
Ang, who works on his laptop at home, makes sure he hits 4,000 Chinese characters every day.
“If I cannot finish during the daytime, I will get up in the middle of the night to write until I do. I have to be strict about that, otherwise how will the scripts get written in time?”
Perhaps that is why he has some reservations about his younger daughter Shuang’s desire to follow in his footsteps and write TV scripts, albeit in English. Ang also has a 25-year-old daughter, a lawyer, with his 51-year-old wife, a housewife.
Shuang, 22, who did a three- month writing internship with Channel 5, tells The Straits Times: “I have always been interested in writing, which I think must have been influenced by my dad. He is very supportive of me, but he did tell me that creative writing is not as easy as it seems.”
But for Ang at least, there appears to be no stopping any time soon.
He says with a chuckle: “I don’t have any other skills anyway. And as Singapore continues to develop, there will be so many other stories I can write.”
When I see something like Game Of Thrones, I think, ‘How can we ever compare?’ The challenge to get eyeballs for local TV will only increase, but I hope that if we continue to do Singaporean stories, there will be something here for Singaporeans to watch. ”
This article was first published on Feb 13, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
Despite the chilly winter, guests at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards appeared to ditch traditional gowns for some fun and flirty looks, with metallics, sequins and embellished dresses dominating the red carpet.
“There weren’t that many classic ball gowns which often do come with the BAFTAS, because it is the creme de la creme,” said Marie-Claire UK deputy digital editor Holly Rains.
Nicole Kidman, Emma Stone, Penelope Cruz, Michelle Williams and Sophie Turner lit up the red carpet with their sparkling outfits in metallic shades, with plunging necklines accentuating the sheen.
Photo Gallery
Stone, who took the best actress award home for her turn as an aspiring actress in the musical movie “La La Land”, wore a Chanel off-runway couture embellished silver outfit with matching cigarette pants and pointy heels.
Cruz chose a Grecian-inspired gown, and supporting actress nominee Williams shimmered in a knee-length, Swinging Sixties style dress.
Other actresses, including Amy Adams and Thandie Newton, opted for more classic silhouettes in darker colours, while Hollywood stalwart Meryl Streep defied the trend by turning up in a black blazer and trousers.
Britain’s Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, breezed past the waiting photographers as she and Prince William arrived at the awards in a black off-shoulder Alexander McQueen gown adorned with white flowers on green stems, paired with a loose updo and glistening earrings.
In the men’s department, a few actors played around with the standard monochromatic tuxedo.
British actors Eddie Redmayne and Andrew Garfield donned white jackets, and fashion designer and director Tom Ford wore a wine-coloured velvet jacket.
On the morning of Feb 15, 1942, the British raised the white flag of surrender. In the second of a three-part series, Chong Zi Liang drops by the bunker where the decision was made 75 years ago and visits sites that are haunting reminders of the brutality of Japanese rule.
Fifteen minutes. That was all the time it took for the British officers who had the task of defending Singapore to decide to give it up.
Twelve wax figures dressed in khaki uniforms are posed around a long, rectangular table to dramatise the pivotal moment, at the “Battlebox” underground British command centre at Fort Canning, now a museum.
Crammed into this chamber the size of a Housing Board apartment bedroom, the real-life Percival and his compatriots would have sweated profusely in their concrete confines deep under a hill – and especially over their dire situation.
It was a decision that must have seemed inevitable: The Japanese had control of most of the island, including the reservoirs. The British forces that had retreated to the city centre had enough water to last only one day and food to last three days.
Later that day, the dejected British made their way to the Ford Factory in Bukit Timah – which had been seized by the Japanese as their command headquarters – to formally surrender.
The Battlebox – one of a few historic war sites I am visiting over several days – was refurbished and reopened to the public last year with air-conditioning, so visitors like myself do not have to experience the same environment of poor ventilation inside the network of 29 rooms 9m underground.
PRISONERS OF WAR
The fateful decision to wave the white flag transformed the British and Allied troops into prisoners of war seemingly overnight.
About 76,000 Allied soldiers and civilians were marched to the east of Singapore, where they were interned at the old Changi Prison and the nearby Selarang Barracks and Roberts Barracks. The prisoners endured hardships of overcrowding, malnutrition and disease.
Many were also sent to work on the infamous Death Railway that spanned Thailand and Myanmar to aid the Japanese war effort.
This suffering is documented at Changi Museum, next to today’s Changi Prison Complex. But the exhibits also chronicle the indomitable human spirit of the internees, who banded together to try to make life just a little more bearable.
For instance, a group of inmates scavenged materials to make footwear, brushes and other necessities, wryly naming their operation the “Changi Industries Incorporated”.
Others taught their fellow prisoners subjects such as mathematics and the classes came to be known as “Changi University”.
During my visit, there is a mix of Singaporeans and overseas tourists at the museum. Mr Loke Tuck Luen, 45, and his wife Kok Kah Hui, 39, are both history teachers who have brought their 11-year-old daughter Erica for an encounter with a grim chapter of the past.
“The displays bring the point across very well,” Mr Loke says. “You can really feel for the prisoners. Our daughter has had a fairly comfortable life so it’s good to show her that tough times once took place in Singapore.”
Read also: Guided trail to offer glimpse of WWII in Singapore
The museum also attracts a steady stream of visitors who have some personal connection to World War II. Many of them pen their thoughts on little slips of paper and leave them on a board at Changi Chapel, a symbolic replica of the simple chapels built by the prisoners as places of solace.
One note reads: “Great Aunt Trixie, to visit the place (where) you suffered so much, brings your suffering to life after hearing all about it. May you rest in peace.”
I later meet Mr Andrew Maclaren, 72, and Ms Heather Wilson, 64, both teachers, who are listening intently to the audio guide of the museum.
They are tourists from Scotland and both have relatives who fought in World War II.
Ms Wilson’s father was in the Royal Air Force and flew 76 missions in Europe, while Mr Maclaren’s uncle was forced into labour on the Death Railway after he was captured as a prisoner of war.
He tells me that though his uncle survived the ordeal, he later took his own life when he was in his 50s.
“He never talked about his war experience. He was damaged by it and there was something not quite right about him,” Mr Maclaren says.
THE SOOK CHING MASSACRE
Indeed, life during the Japanese Occupation, which lasted for more than 31/2 years, was brutal. Just one week after taking over the island, the new Japanese rulers began Operation Sook Ching – a Chinese term meaning “purge through cleansing”.
The Japanese military, suspicious of the Chinese population because of its experiences fighting in China, ordered all Chinese males aged between 18 and 50 to report to screening centres.
One such inspection centre was in Chinatown, where Hong Lim Complex now stands.
A bronze marker to remember the significance of the location stands near the busy junction of South Bridge Road and Upper Cross Street.
The stated objective of the screening was to root out anti-Japanese elements.
But in reality, the process lacked consistency and often hinged on the whims of whoever was on duty.
Some of the men failed the screening based on their answers to questions, while others were condemned because of their occupations.
In some centres, there were hooded informants pointing out those who were supposedly guilty of harbouring anti-Japanese sentiments.
The victims were loaded onto lorries and taken to remote areas to be executed.
One of these spots was Punggol Beach, today a popular hang-out that is crowded during weekends.
Children build sandcastles, while couples take selfies on the same beach where men were executed after being rounded up from houses in Upper Serangoon Road.
Only a marker at Punggol Point Jetty reminds those who spot it of the place’s grisly link to Sook Ching, which claimed the lives of between 25,000 and 50,000 ethnic Chinese across Singapore and Malaya.
FINAL RESTING PLACE
While Changi Prison was the main prison camp during the occupation, there was a smaller one in Kranji.
The inmates there started a small cemetery and in 1946, a year after the war ended, the graves from other parts of Singapore, including of those who died in captivity in Changi, were moved to Kranji.
Even the World War II graves from the Saigon Military Cemetery in Vietnam were relocated here.
There are now about 4,500 burial plots in the war cemetery of the Kranji War Memorial.
I stand at the corner; the neat rows of tombstones seem to carry on endlessly up the hill.
Most carry the name and unit of the dead soldiers.
But with over 850 unidentified graves, many of the headstones are marked simply “a soldier of the 1939-1945 war”.
I walk up the gentle slope to the Singapore Memorial, an imposing, sombre series of grey walls that bear the names of more than 24,000 Commonwealth soldiers and airmen who have no known grave.
For a while, it seems like I am alone in the cemetery.
But as I wander down the main avenue back towards the entrance, I run into Madam Jen Lam, in her mid-50s, who lives nearby and is taking a walk with her husband.
She tells me that she has been coming here for her daily exercise for more than 10 years.
While the cemetery sees few visitors, those who come usually linger to soak up the solemn atmosphere evoked by the white tombstones.
“It’s very peaceful here. It’s a fitting final resting place,” she says.
ziliang@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 13, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
“Blackstar,” the last album of late rock icon David Bowie – who enjoyed little recognition at the Grammys over his long career – on Sunday won five awards – a clean sweep for its five nominations.
Bowie, who was always more recognised in his native Britain than in his adopted home the United States, was controversially passed over for Album of the Year honors at this year’s Grammys.
But “Blackstar” won in its five categories – including Best Rock Song, Best Rock Performance, Best Alternative Music Album and best engineering on a non-classical album.
“Blackstar” also won Best Recording Package, for artist Jonathan Barnbrook.
Bowie released “Blackstar” on his 69th birthday in January 2016, just two days before he died from a previously undisclosed battle with cancer.
The album showed Bowie, famous for his chameleon-like skill in adapting to new genres, to be musically innovative until the end.
He collaborated on “Blackstar” with the avant-garde jazz saxophonist Donny McCaslin, whose instrument duels in the songs with Bowie’s voice.
“I’m a better artist and a better person for having known him,” an emotional McCaslin, wearing a “Blackstar” T-shirt under his suit, said as he accepted one of the awards.
McCaslin described Bowie as a warm person as well as a talented artist, saying the rocker at one point during their sessions emailed to say, “I haven’t had this much fun since my heart attack.” Speaking later to reporters, McCaslin said that while it was impossible to know how Bowie would have reacted to the Grammys, the rocker had noticed the praise for “Blackstar.” “When the press was hearing the album before it came out, I could see it meant a lot to him,” McCaslin said.
Kevin Killen, who shared the engineering Grammy for “Blackstar,” said that artists “don’t necessarily think about getting awards” when they record music.
“I’m surprised it’s taken this long for him to be recognised but that’s just the nature of how these events unfold,” Killen told reporters.
Bowie fans closely scanned “Blackstar” for lyrical clues that foreshadowed his death, with Bowie singing of unseen scars and of making peace with never again seeing the “English evergreens.” Before Sunday, Bowie had won only a single Grammy, in a music video category, other than a career achievement award.
“Blackstar” was passed over for Album of the Year, whose nominees include pop celebrity Justin Bieber’s “Purpose.”
JAKARTA – Indonesians will vote on Wednesday (Feb 15) in regional elections in more than 100 provinces, cities, and districts, with the contest for the powerful post of Jakarta governor turning into one of the more divisive political battles in the country’s democratic era.
The race to lead the city of more than 10 million is being fought by three candidates – an ethnic Chinese Christian and two Muslims – and has triggered mass protests and stirred religious and political tensions in the world’s third-largest democracy.
CANDIDATES IN JAKARTA ELECTION
– Mr Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, also known as Ahok
The incumbent governor took over running Jakarta in 2014 when his then boss, Mr Joko Widodo, won the presidency.
The 50-year-old is the city’s first ethnic Chinese and Christian leader, and has angered some Muslim voters for allegedly insulting the Quran. He has denied wrongdoing, but is on trial for blasphemy in a case that some view as politically motivated.
He is backed by the country’s ruling party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
His popular policies include a commitment to tackling chronic flooding and traffic in the city and improving the bureaucracy.
– Mr Agus Yudhoyono
He is the oldest son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and retired from the military at 38 to run for the governorship.
He is backed by the Democrat Party and some Islamic parties.
Mr Yuhoyono’s campaign has focused on improving the lives of Jakarta’s poor and he has promised cash handouts to low-income families.
– Mr Anies Baswedan
Mr Baswedan, 47, was the former education minister in President Widodo’s government. He is supported by Gerindra, a party headed by failed presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto.
His campaign has focused on improving public education and combating the rising costs of food and living.
VOTING PROCESS IN JAKARTA
Official results are expected to be announced on March 8-10. If no candidates achieves a majority in the first round, a runoff is expected in May between the two candidates securing the most votes.
Defeated candidates can dispute the results in the Constitutional Court.
SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES
If the incumbent governor Basuki wins the Jakarta election but is convicted of blasphemy, he is legally allowed to assume office as long as the appeals process is ongoing.
BY THE NUMBERS
A total of 7.1 million people are registered to vote in Jakarta.
Elections will also be held for governors, mayors and regents in 101 regions throughout the country.
Seven provinces, including Jakarta, will choose a governor and there will be 18 city elections and 76 district elections.
SINGAPORE: The total number of drug abusers arrested fell in 2016, but there was an increase in the number of new drug abusers that were caught, according to the Central Narcotics Bureau’s (CNB) annual statistics released on Monday (Feb 13).
According to CNB, 3,245 drug abusers were arrested last year, a 3 per cent decrease from the year before. The number of repeat drug abusers arrested also went down 7 per cent from 2,034 in 2015 to 1,898 last year.
However, the number of new drug abusers arrested rose 3 per cent to 1,347 from 2015’s 1,309. Among the new abusers arrested, close to two-thirds were below 30 years old, according to the latest statistics.
About 41 per cent of the total drug abusers arrested last year were under 30, CNB figures showed.
A snapshot of Singapore’s drug situation in 2016. (Infographic: CNB)
There has also been a rise in online drug peddling, with the number of people arrested for buying drugs and drug-related paraphernalia online increasing significantly from 30 in 2015 to 201 last year – a 570 per cent jump, the report showed.
Most of those found to have obtained drugs or drug-related paraphernalia online were between the ages of 20 to 39, it added.
“It has become easy for anyone to order items on the Internet and have them delivered by post or courier. Drug syndicates and peddlers have taken advantage of the borderless nature of the Internet to conduct illegal drug activities,” the agency said.
“CNB will continue to work closely with its Home Team counterparts and strategic partners to build up its detection and enforcement capabilities against online drug trafficking activities.”
The regional and global drug situations also “remain of concern” with regional seizures of drugs like methamphetamine and cannabis remaining high, CNB said.
The 2016 World Drug Report by the United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime (UNODC) reported that methamphetamine seizures in East and Southeast Asia almost quadrupled between 2009 and 2014. The UNODC 2016 World Drug Report also indicated that cannabis remained the most widely cultivated drug crop, and continued to be the most trafficked drug worldwide, the report said.
Looking ahead to 2017, CNB said it will step up its efforts to engage youths on the danger of drugs. For instance, it appointed footballer Irfan Fandi as its anti-drug advocate last month, and it hopes more youth advocates will join its Anti-Drug Advocate Programme to help fight drug abuse in this age demographic.
It will also refresh its annual Anti-Drug Abuse Campaign this year with a renewed focus on involving youths in the fight against drugs, as well as enhance its social media efforts, the agency added.
SINGAPORE: Commuters were mostly satisfied with taxi and private hire car services in Singapore in 2016, according to a survey by Public Transport Council (PTC).
The survey released on Monday (Feb 13) was revamped to include the tracking of commuter satisfaction with private hire car services. Respondents were surveyed on eight key attributes of taxi services: Waiting time, ease of booking, information, ride comfort, driver’s knowledge of route, service provided by the driver, safety and taxi stand accessibility.
Of the 1,526 taxi and private hire car services users interviewed for the Point-to-Point Transport Services Customer Satisfaction Survey, respondents gave a satisfaction mean score of 7.7 out of 10 for such services, while 95.8 per cent of respondents were satisfied with the services.
The survey also revealed that out of all rides taken by respondents over a seven day period, about half were private hire car rides while the other half were taxi rides.
For private hire car services, respondents were surveyed on the same attributes except taxi stand accessibility, which is not applicable.
The survey also found that respondents placed the highest importance on three attributes – driver’s knowledge of route, safety and waiting time. Taxi users were most satisfied with these same three attributes, while private hire car users were most satisfied with driver’s knowledge of route, safety and ease of booking, PTC said.
PTC added that the stated satisfaction mean score for taxi services saw an improvement from 7.5 in 2015 to 7.6 in 2016. The percentage score is also higher at 93.6 per cent, a significant 2 percentage point improvement, reflecting “the taxi industry’s efforts in improving their level of service to commuters”.
The stated satisfaction mean score for private hire car services is 8.1, and the percentage score is 96.2 per cent, it said.
Nexus Link was commissioned by PTC to conduct the survey, which ran from Aug 13 to Aug 28, 2016, at 30 locations in Singapore during both peak and off-peak periods as well as across different days of the week.
Mr Jonathan Toh has seen his workplace shrink from being an old giant in Singapore’s retail space to becoming a modern pop-up store.
The last John Little outlet, in Plaza Singapura, that closed on Jan 2 is a far cry from the one the 52-year-old remembers working at, fresh out of secondary school, a lifetime ago.
Mr Toh – one of John Little’s longest-serving staff, with 35 years of service – recalled the fond memories in an interview with The Straits Times.
John Little in Plaza Singapura took up the whole of the fourth storey when it opened in 1979. When he joined a few years later, it was popular for its mid-priced merchandise like furniture and curtains, he said.
Mr Toh said he thoroughly enjoyed the sales that were held by the store at its old Specialists’ Shopping Centre outlet.
He relished the buzz and energy that came with the sales.
Read Also: 2016 Year in review: Hanjin Shipping collapses, John Little shuts its last store
“It was very busy. Customers would wait outside before we opened, and rush in. But that’s what I liked.”
John Little, which has a 175-year history in Singapore, may be gone as a department store but will continue to operate through pop-up stores.
Of the 33 staff who worked at the Plaza Singapura outlet, about half have been redeployed within the group.
Other than the Plaza Singapura and Specialists’ Shopping Centre outlets, Mr Toh worked at the Marina Square branch until 2015, when it closed.
He now works at the Raffles City branch of Robinsons department store, which is under the same group that manages John Little.
Mr Toh finds that customers now are different from those decades ago.
Read Also: Dept stores go out of fashion with new trends
“Now, they are more interested in quality than price. They also do a lot of research… and ask many questions,” he said.
Another thing that is different now is the amount of service offered by salesmen.
When Mr Toh started out, he was a contractor, electrician and salesman rolled into one.
After a customer put a deposit down for an item, he would personally visit the customer’s home to take measurements, much like a contractor.
As an employee in the store’s home department, he even had to learn how lighting wires worked.
Whatever his role was, Mr Toh always catered to the needs of his customers, building a loyal base, and even won a national award, the Excellent Service Award (Silver).
Read Also: John Little to close last Singapore store by December
For the staff, John Little was also a haven.
Employees had their own pantry, and the luxury of having meal breaks within the store.
Said Mr Toh: “We had an auntie selling economical rice beside the pantry. Food was so cheap then; it cost only $2.50. She would also give us coffee and tea from a kettle.”
Their lunch breaks would sometimes be accompanied by tunes from a guitar played by a colleague.
He also recalled Christmas parties within the store itself, with wares pushed aside to make way for fun.
And just downstairs was Japanese department store and supermarket Yaohan, where Mr Toh and his colleagues would buy snacks from.
While the John Little department store may have closed, a piece of it has lived in Mr Toh’s home for the past 10 years – a lounge chair he took a fancy to and bought.
Less tangible are the friendships that he has built and kept with his close-knit teams while working there.
Last month, 40 of them made a day trip to Malacca.
“It was nice, we were talking and laughing. And eating, of course,” he said.
Sales were ‘worth the wait’
Long-time customers recall their trips to John Little with a sense of nostalgia.
Mrs Rukmani Gunasegaram, 69, still remembers her trips to John Little’s Specialists’ Shopping Centre branch in the 1980s.
The housewife said she would spend about four leisurely hours shopping at the department store, which shuttered its final outlet here last month.
“I went there often, twice a week sometimes. I used to get my pots and pans there. I still have them, and they still shine,” she said.
Similarly, she has decorative porcelain tiles from the store that are still displayed in her kitchen, and she even remembers that they cost her just $1.50 apiece.
“People who come to my home still ask me where I got them. They still look as good as new,” she said.
Madam Christina Lim, 57, who works in the hospitality industry as vice-president of sales and marketing, said that she would visit the store frequently during sales periods.
“So crowded but worth the wait and crush. You were assured it was a genuine sale. You could get great deals – anything from 50 per cent to 70 per cent,” she said.
jalmsab@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 13, 2017.
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SINGAPORE – The guidelines around a new category of private homes for short-term rentals will become clearer in the coming months, with the Government set to engage both industry stakeholders and the public in the second quarter of this year.
Among the issues that could surface are the maximum duration that homes can be rented out for in a year, whether the new category would apply to residences in a specific area, and how best to ensure the safety and privacy of other residents in the area.
The consultation comes amid some criticism of the measures that National Development Minister Lawrence Wong floated in Parliament last Monday.
Parliament passed laws that make Airbnb-style rentals illegal, in line with Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) guidelines in place since 2009.
But Mr Wong also said his ministry was considering two proposals: a new category of homes for short-term rentals; and lowering the minimum rental period of residences from the current six months.
Read also: Short-term home rentals like Airbnb now illegal, government looking at changes
On short-term rentals, which cater mainly to tourists, the authorities are seeking feedback to come up with “safeguards against negative externalities”, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said in response to queries. It noted that residents have raised concerns about safety and privacy arising from the comings and goings of transient visitors.
The URA received 608 complaints last year, 61 per cent more than the 377 in 2015. There were 375 complaints in 2014.
The MND also sought to distinguish between the kind of guests both proposals would attract.
Referring to the lowering of the minimum rental period, it said: “This review concerns conventional residential tenancies rather than short-term subletting, which is typically conducted on a daily or weekly basis.”
It added: “The move is meant to allow homes to be rented to those who are in Singapore for extended periods but cannot commit to a lease period of at least six months.”
The MND did not give details, but industry watchers said this group could comprise medical tourists, or those working on events and projects that require them to be temporarily based in Singapore.
Still, some industry watchers are sceptical about the suggestions.
Despite URA officers getting new enforcement powers to investigate breaches after amendments to the Planning Act were passed last week, International Property Advisor chief executive Ku Swee Yong predicts difficulty wielding them with regard to shortened leases.
“If you reduce the lease to three months, people will complain that it’s not short enough. But if it’s something like one month, it’ll be taxing for officers to make sure it’s adhered to,” he said.
He also panned the proposed new category, saying it would further complicate regulations for a market saturated with hotels, hostels and serviced apartments.
But Suntec Real Estate Consultants director of research and consultancy Colin Tan suggests that the new category could include owners of shoebox apartments or city-centre homes, where families are less likely to reside.
“The new category, depending on its form, would balance safety and space constraints… with being forward-thinking about the sharing economy,” he said.
rachelay@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 13, 2017.
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