Chinese New Year (CNY) is just around the corner, and most of you would be thinking of buying back snacks from your overseas trips for the festive period.

Hold that thought.

Depending on what you buy, you might just be breaking the law.

Take bak kwa for example.

The pork dish is a favourite among Singaporeans, especially for CNY.

But did you know that it is also on the list of items travellers are barred from bringing into Singapore, as pointed out by Roads.sg?

A post on the Roads.sg page detailed:

“The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) and the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) issued a joint advisory reminding travellers to check the guidelines on the importation of items.

“Bak kwa is considered a pork product and can be imported only from approved regions including Australia, Japan, United States and a number of European countries.

“Pork from Malaysia, and all other South-east Asian countries, is not allowed even for personal consumption.”

So before you purchase snacks or delicacies from overseas to bring into Singapore, read the full list of prohibited items on the AVA website.

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Stomp contributor Caleb was driving along Seletar Expressway at around 7.50am today (Jan 19) when he witnessed a chain collision.

In the video he submitted to Stomp, a black BMW can be seen cruising along the right lane.

However, when traffic comes to a halt, the driver fails to brake in time, leading to a chain collision.

It is unknown how many vehicles were damaged or if anyone was hurt.

The Stomp contributor said:

“Captured this on my dashcam, sharing it in case someone wants it for whatever reason.

“Not sure what happened but it was obvious that the traffic had stopped, yet the BMW still sped up.”

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Stomp contributor Caleb was driving along Seletar Expressway at around 7.50am today (Jan 19) when he witnessed a chain collision.

In the video he submitted to Stomp, a black BMW can be seen cruising along the right lane.

However, when traffic comes to a halt, the driver fails to brake in time, leading to a chain collision.

It is unknown how many vehicles were damaged or if anyone was hurt.

The Stomp contributor said:

“Captured this on my dashcam, sharing it in case someone wants it for whatever reason.

“Not sure what happened but it was obvious that the traffic had stopped, yet the BMW still sped up.”

Visit STOMP for more stories.

This might be a super fancy sports car — but the same probably cannot be said for its driver’s steering skills.

Stomp contributor Yap shared a video that showed the driver getting into an accident on a slip road along the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) towards the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE).

The vehicle had skidded and then crashed into the road divider.

According to the video’s time-stamp, the incident took place on Jan 18 at around 6.35pm.

In the clip, a male voice can be heard saying, “Go so fast for what?” and “Lost control already” in reference to the collision.

Yap said:

“Going too fast on a rainy day is really not a good idea.”

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The Ministry of Education (MOE) plans to review all long-overdue university tuition fee loans by June.

It is also working with banks and universities to more clearly define their responsibilities and work processes for recovering loans.

The Auditor-General had earlier flagged MOE in its annual audit of public agencies for not promptly following up on outstanding loans to tertiary students, which amounted to over half a billion dollars.

In a report released yesterday, Parliament’s public accounts watchdog listed the measures MOE is taking to address issues raised by the Auditor-General’s Office (AGO).

MOE told the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that it has reviewed 20 per cent of the outstanding loans since last September.

The ministry is also dropping a review of a formula used to calculate fees payable to banks for administering loans for the universities.

The fees due to the banks are a percentage of outstanding loan balances. AGO flagged this formula six years ago, saying it discourages banks from doing their best to recover outstanding loans as the fees due will be reduced when any loan amount is recovered or written off.

MOE said it has decided tweaking the formula alone will not incentivise the banks to recover loans. Instead, the ministry will work with universities and banks to monitor loan administration and track borrowers more closely.

It will also introduce penalty clauses to enable it to take action against banks that do not meet a certain service standard.

The ministry aims to finalise this agreement with banks and universities by July.

The PAC, noting that the ministry had scrapped a review after six years, urged it to “closely monitor the effectiveness of the new measures on a yearly basis”.

It also noted that Nanyang Polytechnic, an MOE statutory board, allowed the name of a registered charity to be used to solicit donations for needy graduates, which was unauthorised.

MOE told the PAC that it had instructed the chairman of the polytechnic’s education fund to inform donors that their donations could not be used for the initial purpose, and will be channelled to approved purposes.

The PAC, comprising eight MPs, said the issue occurred because some officers did not understand the rules and the Government’s instructions.

To address this, the polytechnic has sent officers handling donations and fund-raising matters for courses, so they are up to date on relevant guidelines.

leepearl@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 19, 2017.
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The Labour Court can order an employer to pay a worker what he is owed, but cannot enforce the order because it is a matter between the worker and employer.

Such salary recovery matters are “civil claims”, a Ministry of Manpower (MOM) spokesman said.

MOM gets about 4,500 salary claims by foreign workers a year, “less than 0.4 per cent” of the foreign workforce.

Nine in 10 of them are settled through mediation.

The rest go to the Labour Court.

“Most employers comply with Labour Court orders.

They are debarred from employing new foreign workers at least until they have done so,” the MOM said.

The rest were mostly in financial trouble or had ceased operations.

Read also: Labour Court can’t make employer pay

Workers can try to enforce the order by applying to the State Courts to seize the employer’s assets and sell them off.

About 10 workers do so each year, and MOM will give advice and help with paperwork.

The costs incurred can be recovered.

But MOM said: “Workers should have a realistic expectation of what could be recovered from a company which has ceased operations.”

Mr Islam should not have let the unpaid salary pile up, it added.

“The likelihood of salary recovery would have been higher if the worker had come forward earlier instead of allowing the sum owed to accumulate and the firm to rack up higher debts to other creditors,” it said.

This article was first published on Jan 19, 2017.
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Last month, a construction company boss was ordered by the Labour Court to pay a Bangladeshi construction worker $7,363 in unpaid wages.

But when the employer did not meet the payment deadline last Thursday, the court’s hands were tied.

Instead, the worker was asked to go to the State Courts to take action to recover the sum, a step that would require him to fork out money he does not have.

The case highlights a little- known limitation of the Labour Court, and the dilemma workers face when employers refuse to comply with its orders.

At the centre of the dispute is Mr Islam Rafiqul, a 42-year-old construction worker, and his employer Md Shamsuzzaman, sole proprietor of Geosray Engineering and Services.

Mr Islam, a work permit holder, started working for the company in February 2015, earning about $700 a month in basic salary and $1,000 a month with overtime.

He did not receive his full salary between October 2015 and June 2016.

From July last year, the salary payment stopped completely.

He complained to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) last September and was given a special pass to remain in Singapore while his salary claim was being processed.

The pass prohibits him from working.

“I have not sent money home for many months,” said Mr Islam, who is supporting his wife and two children, aged five and 10.

MOM held meetings between Mr Islam and his employer in September and October.

The employer agreed to pay, but later went back on his word.

The case then went before the Commissioner of Labour, or what is commonly called the Labour Court, which held a closed-door hearing on Dec 29.

The employer was ordered by the Labour Court to pay Mr Islam $7,363 by Jan 12.

He did not.

Read also: MOM: Salary recovery matters are civil claims

Mr Islam met MOM officials again on Jan 13 and was told, in writing, to go to the State Courts himself to apply for a court bailiff to seize the employer’s assets and auction them off to recover the unpaid wages.

He was given a letter that said the court action will cost him more than $1,000 which includes a $300 deposit, about $400 in legal fees, $50 an hour to hire a bailiff and fees to the court and auctioneer.

MOM said that he had to take this route because salary recovery matters are “civil claims” .

“I was angry,” said Mr Islam, who has been working here since 1998.

When contacted, Mr Shamsuzzaman said that he could not pay Mr Islam because a main contractor owed him more than $100,000.

“My company is no longer active. I am working as a delivery man now,” said the Bangladesh national, who is a Singapore permanent resident.

Company records showed that the firm is registered to a shell office at International Plaza while Mr Shamsuzzaman, who is in his late 40s, lives in a Woodlands Housing Board flat.

Mr Patrick Tay, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Manpower, said enforcement of Labour Court orders can be “challenging” if employers do not comply.

“Perhaps special help and relief can be provided to assist workers, especially the low-wage workers, in this respect,” he suggested.

Mr Alex Au, treasurer of Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2), said the case “shows how the process can be ineffective, leaving the worker high and dry”.

Mr Islam had sought help from TWC2 last September.

“Singapore can reduce the incidence of such default cases by making it a criminal offence on the part of directors of companies to ignore Labour Court orders,” Mr Au added.

Despite the setback, Mr Islam is still holding on to the slim hope of getting his unpaid salary.

“I have a wife and two children (to support). I cannot go home without the money,” he said.

tohyc@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 19, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.