SINGAPORE – Yet another government agency has issued a public warning of an ongoing scam impersonating public officers – the second to do so in a week.
This time, the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) has warned of a person or persons have been impersonating a…
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CNB warns of impersonation scam, second government agency to do so in a week
Power supply trip hits 40-storey Dover Crescent HDB block
All four lifts serving the block were down for about an hour.
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China giant panda gives birth to twins
Beijing – A giant panda in China has given birth to two cubs, conservation authorities said, the first twins of the critically endangered species this year even though multiple births are common.
Six-year-old Ya Li had the twin sisters last month at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in the southwestern province of Sichuan, it said in a statement.
They weighed 144 grams (5 ounces) and 113 grams each, said the statement on Monday (June 20).
Ya Li was a twin herself, it added.
China had 1,864 giant pandas in the wild, mainly in Sichuan, by the end of 2013, according to a government survey released last year.
The country had 422 giant pandas in captivity at the end of 2015 and aims to bring the number up to 500 by 2020 in order to ensure sufficient genetic diversity among captive pandas, the official Xinhua news agency reported in January.
Giant pandas have notoriously low libidos, frustrating efforts to boost their numbers.
But twin pandas have been on the rise in recent years with the development of artificial insemination technology. Female bears’ ovulation is closely monitored and sperm from at least two males is often used to increase the chances of a successful insemination.
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Chili’s $8.88 Burger & Fries in Celebration of Annual Burger Day on 29 Jun 2016
29 JUNE (Wed): Chili’s celebrates Annual Burger Day with $8.88 burger & fries at 3 locations
Chili’s $8.88 Burger & Fries in Celebration of Annual Burger Day on 29 Jun 2016
Chili’s celebrates their 7th anniversary with the 6th Annual Burger Day on June 29, Wednesday. Come mark this milestone and sink your teeth into any of their burgers for only $8.88 with a side of fries all day!
Albirex the team to beat in The New Paper League Cup
Defending champions Albirex Niigata will be the team to beat in next month’s The New Paper League Cup as the White Swans aim to carry over their superb S.League form in their quest to win an unprecedented quadruple.
The draw…
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N. Korea test fires two powerful, mid-range missiles
Seoul – Nuclear-armed North Korea conducted two back-to-back tests of a powerful new medium-range missile on Wednesday (June 22), with both achieving a significant increase in flight distance over previous failed launches, South Korea’s Defence Ministry said.
Both tests were believed to be of a much-hyped, intermediate-range Musudan missile – theoretically capable of reaching US bases as far away as Guam.
International condemnation was swift, with the United States and Japan labelling the launches a clear violation of UN resolutions, and South Korea vowing to push for tighter sanctions on Pyongyang.
Existing UN Security Council measures ban North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology.
The first test shortly before 6:00 am (2100 GMT Tuesday) was deemed to have failed after reportedly flying around 150 kilometres (90 miles) over the East Sea (Sea of Japan).
According to Japanese military monitors, the second missile attained a height of 1,000 kilometers and a range of 400 kilometers – a trajectory some experts suggested was calculated to avoid any violation of Japanese air space.
Four failed Musudan tests earlier this year all either exploded on the mobile launch pad or shortly after take-off.
A successful test would mark a major step forward for a weapons programme that ultimately aspires to develop a proven nuclear strike capability against the US mainland.
Melissa Hanham, an expert on North Korea’s WMD programme at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California, said Wednesday’s launches represented a worrying step forward.
“The second was likely a success. Testing is iterative and they are learning from each flight,” Hanham told AFP.
“Policymakers need to focus on a testing ban to prevent this from becoming a working missile,” she added.
US State Department spokesman John Kirby said the latest launches would only increase global efforts to counter North Korea’s illicit weapons programme.
“We intend to raise our concerns at the UN to bolster international resolve in holding (North Korea) accountable for these provocative actions,” Kirby said in a statement.
Japanese broadcaster NHK quoted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as saying such tests “cannot be tolerated”.
South Korea’s foreign ministry warned that North Korea would face even stronger sanctions and said the tests underlined “the hypocrisy and deceptiveness” of Pyongyang’s recent offers of military talks with Seoul.
First unveiled as an indigenous missile at a military parade in Pyongyang in October 2010, the Musudan has a theoretical range of anywhere between 2,500 and 4,000 kilometres.
The lower estimate covers the whole of South Korea and Japan, while the upper range would include US military bases on Guam.
Three failed launches in April were seen as an embarrassment for North Korea’s leadership, coming ahead of a rare ruling party congress that was meant to celebrate the country’s achievements.
Another attempt in May was also deemed to have failed.
Markus Schiller, a German aerospace engineer who has written extensively on North Korea’s missile programme, said a lot of information on the Musudan was highly speculative and warned against drawing too many conclusions from Wednesday’s launches.
“We do not even know if these were indeed Musudan missiles that were launched today,” Schiller said, noting that the North’s standard Rodong missile was capable of a similar flight profile.
The latest tests came with military tensions on the divided Korean peninsula still running high following Pyongyang’s fourth nuclear test in January and a long-range rocket launch a month later that saw the UN Security Council impose its toughest sanctions to date on the North.
In recent months, North Korea has claimed a series of technical breakthroughs in developing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to targets across the continental United States.
The North has displayed an ICBM, the KN-08, during military parades, but it has never been tested.
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Wednesday, June 22, 2016 – 17:03
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COE premiums close higher across the board in latest bidding exercise
The biggest increase was in the Open Category, which rose to S$48,002 from S$46,434 in the previous bidding exercise.
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CNB warns of callers who impersonate its officers and ask for money
SINGAPORE – If you receive a phone call or WhatsApp message from someone claiming to be from the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), who first says that you “have cases with CNB” and later asks you for money, take heed: It’s either a prank or a scam.
In a statement on Tuesday (June 22), CNB highlighted such reported incidents and that it will be working with the police to investigate them.
CNB said that its officers are not allowed to request for any favours in money or in kind, nor to threaten any person to provide monetary favours in order to facilitate a case.
Anyone who suspects that they have been a victim of such pranks or attempts to dishonestly appropriate money are advised to contact CNB at 1800-325-6666 or e-mail CNB_Feedback@cnb.gov.sg to report their suspicions.
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Wednesday, June 22, 2016 – 17:16
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Future Economy team looks for novel ways out of land shortage
A SUB-GROUP of the Committee on the Future Economy (CFE) is looking at “innovative” approaches to overcome Singapore’s land constraints as the economy is being restructured.
Not only is it considering new technologies to make better use of Singapore’s road network, the group is also digging deep into solutions that involve putting utilities underground.
These approaches are crucial because Singapore’s economy is maturing and constraints on resources, including land and energy, are “starting to bite”, said Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong.
He sits on the CFE, a high-level panel tasked to chart the direction of Singapore’s economic restructuring.
He is co-chair of one of the CFE’s sub-committees on Future City, which is concerned with the infrastructure needed for the future; Tan Chong Meng, group chief of PSA International, is the other chairman.
Speaking at the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce annual general meeting luncheon, Mr Wong said: “Underpinning all of these ideas is the consistent theme of innovation. That is the way we have to think about the economy going forward.”
At the event, he shared “preliminary” recommendations in five areas that the group is looking at.
The first is infrastructure – that which is needed to enhance connectivity, brought about by better technologies.
Mr Wong said that for example, housing estates could be equipped with the necessary infrastructure to facilitate the movement of autonomous vehicles. Such vehicles, called “people mover systems”, are already in use in Gardens by the Bay.
These vehicles can very well operate in Singapore’s housing estates in 15 years, he said; it is already a work-in-progress.
The second area the Future City sub-committee is looking at lies in going underground to overcome land constraints.
Reclamation projects have helped Singapore expand land area, he said, but the country can do more to exploit the potential for underground developments; putting power stations underground is being considered.
“It costs more, but it will free up surface land for development, and potentially from a cost-benefit point of view, it will be worth doing in the longer term,” he said.
The third area the group is looking at is enhancing Singapore’s position as a global city. The central business district (CBD) will be expanded after the Pasir Panjang port facilities are moved to Tuas; a second CBD will come up in the Jurong Lake District.
The fourth area is the co-locating related industries. There is potential for Jurong to be a centre for clean technology companies, Woodlands to be the hub for advanced manufacturing, and Punggol, for creative industries, said Mr Wong.
The fifth area would be ensuring the security of key resources.
Singapore is already looking for a site for a second liquefied natural gas terminal, and will maximise space to harness alternative energy sources.
The Housing Development Board has already issued tenders for companies to deploy solar panels on rooftops of housing estates, he said.
Terming these plans as medium- to long-term ones that may not immediately address concerns, Mr Wong said they will take several terms of government to implement.
“These are not five-year plans, but that is a uniquely Singaporean competitive advantage … We can plan long term and we have been doing so,” he said.
This article was first published on June 22, 2016
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COE premiums rise in all categories
SINGAPORE – Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums rose across all categories on Wednesday (June 22) at the end of the latest bidding exercise.
During the first bidding exercise of the month on June 8, premiums in Category A (Cars up to 1600CC &…
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