JOHOR BARU is conducting a trial run of its long-delayed Vehicle Entry Permit System (VEP) on incoming Singapore vehicles at its Causeway and Second Link checkpoints, which will last till July 15, Malaysian media reported.

During the trial period, which began at midnight yesterday, Singapore vehicles entering Johor need not pay the VEP fee of RM20 (S$6.60), reported Bernama news agency.

The fee will only be imposed from July 16.

“Meanwhile, the registration of vehicles for VEP will be open until the end of the year,” Hasni Mohammad, chairman of Johor’s Public Works, Rural and Regional Development Committee, told Bernama.

Singapore vehicles not registered with VEP, which is run by Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ), will be refused entry into the country after the system is fully implemented.

A road charge of RM10 is to be paid during registration, which will be valid for five years.

According to Mr Hasni, 120,000 Singapore vehicles have already registered.

Johor’s transport chief also said the JPJ will be involved in the trial for two weeks – which will mainly ensure there are no glitches when using the cameras and sensors installed on vehicle lanes to read number plates and the VEP identification tags, reported The Star daily.

But Mr Hasni warned that Singapore-registered vehicles which have not settled summonses will be detected.

There will be JPJ staff available round the clock at the checkpoints to help officers and drivers who run into problems with the system, said Mr Hasni.

Starting yesterday, Malaysian immigration officers must also personally check vehicles carrying many passengers to ensure the correct number of passports are submitted.

The VEP, which was originally slated for launch in August last year, looks unlikely to be fully implemented before next year.

How to register

•Create an account at Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (RTD) website.

•You can download your Vehicle Registration Card PDF file from the website of Singapore’s Land Transport Authority and upload it to the RTD website. Once successful, a PDF confirmation slip will be sent to you via e-mail.

•Those registering at the Johor Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex will need to have their vehicle registration card, latest insurance cover note and passport with them.

•To collect the VEP tag, users must have the registered vehicle, passport, confirmation slip and RM10 (S$3.30) for an administration fee.

•The VEP tag is valid for five years and must be renewed three months before the expiry date. •For more details, visit the RTD website at https://vep.jpj.gov.my

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JOHOR BARU is conducting a trial run of its long-delayed Vehicle Entry Permit System (VEP) on incoming Singapore vehicles at its Causeway and Second Link checkpoints, which will last till July 15, Malaysian media reported.

During the trial period, which began at midnight yesterday, Singapore vehicles entering Johor need not pay the VEP fee of RM20 (S$6.60), reported Bernama news agency.

The fee will only be imposed from July 16.

“Meanwhile, the registration of vehicles for VEP will be open until the end of the year,” Hasni Mohammad, chairman of Johor’s Public Works, Rural and Regional Development Committee, told Bernama.

Singapore vehicles not registered with VEP, which is run by Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ), will be refused entry into the country after the system is fully implemented.

A road charge of RM10 is to be paid during registration, which will be valid for five years.

According to Mr Hasni, 120,000 Singapore vehicles have already registered.

Johor’s transport chief also said the JPJ will be involved in the trial for two weeks – which will mainly ensure there are no glitches when using the cameras and sensors installed on vehicle lanes to read number plates and the VEP identification tags, reported The Star daily.

But Mr Hasni warned that Singapore-registered vehicles which have not settled summonses will be detected.

There will be JPJ staff available round the clock at the checkpoints to help officers and drivers who run into problems with the system, said Mr Hasni.

Starting yesterday, Malaysian immigration officers must also personally check vehicles carrying many passengers to ensure the correct number of passports are submitted.

The VEP, which was originally slated for launch in August last year, looks unlikely to be fully implemented before next year.

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A WOMAN who went to a stairwell to check on a young woman whom her husband saw sitting there alone found the young woman lying in her own blood and called for help.

The incident happened at 9.50am on Tuesday at Block 276, Toh Guan Road, Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao reported yesterday.

Housewife Gao Minghe, 57, told Wanbao that her husband had seen a woman sitting by herself at the stairwell with her back to him when he had gone out to the corridor to throw some rubbish.

When he was returning home, he saw that she had lain down as if to rest.

He told Ms Gao about what he had seen, and they took their grandson out for breakfast 10 minutes later.

When they were at the lift, Ms Gao felt uneasy about the woman and decided to head to the stairwell for a look.

She found the young woman on the floor, with a lot of blood on the steps.

Said Ms Gao: “The girl was unconscious and looked very pale. There was a kitchen knife at her right and her left wrist had a very deep cut, which had bled a lot. It looked like she was bleeding out completely.”

Ms Gao immediately called the police, while her husband and paramedics who arrived later kept trying to wake the girl up. She did so a while later and looked expressionless.

According to Ms Gao, the police found the woman’s address from identification she had on her, and her mother and brother rushed to the scene when notified.

The police told My Paper yesterday that a 24-year-old woman was arrested in relation to a case of attempted suicide and was sent to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital while conscious.

Residents told Wanbao that the woman was very quiet and was usually seen with her family.

Ms Gao said: “Luckily I went back to make sure, otherwise if we had just gone down for breakfast, a life would have been lost.” Police investigations are under way.

myp@sph.com.sg

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AFTER a 30-day trial, popular restaurant group Paradise was yesterday found guilty of 29 out of 33 charges of using about $640,000 worth of gas without paying a cent for it, and with tampering with gas meters at some of its outlets here.

The Energy Market Authority (EMA), which regulates the gas industry, is asking for the maximum fine of $610,000 – $10,000 for each of the 21 tempering charges it was convicted of, and $50,000 for each of the eight dishonest consumption charges.

The statutory board’s prosecuting counsel Amarjit Singh said yesterday that when someone steals utilities, it ultimately leads to consumers having to pay more. In addition, tampering with gas mains could interrupt supplies, or lead to gas leaks and even death.

Paradise restaurant group stole $640k worth of gas

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Paradise Group, The Straits Times

He added that offences involving illegal tapping of gas and tampering with gas meter installations or gas mains could potentially cause interruption to supplies and inconvenience to other consumers.

The prosecuting counsel added that tampering with gas meter installation also poses public safety concerns.

Senior Counsel Engelin Teh will present the defence’s view of an appropriate sentence before District Judge Ng Peng Hong on June 24. Paradise’s offences were committed between August 2011 and April the following year.

Gas provider City Gas detected an abnormally low gas consumption at Taste Paradise in Ion shopping mall on March 23, 2012, which led to the unravelling of the massive-scale fraud.

Seals meant to secure the bypass valve of gas meters at Paradise outlets were missing. In some instances, the position of the valve was moved from “closed” to “open”, allowing gas to flow without registering on the meters.

Eight restaurants dishonestly used gas diverted past the meter, which was not reflected in the monthly bill issued by City Gas. The total loss suffered by the gas supplier was $636,438.12.

In January 2014, Paradise, known for both its fine-dining and casual Chinese eateries, was charged with tempering with the gas meters at 24 of its outlets.

Of the 24 restaurants, 13 were from Paradise Inn eateries, four came under Kung Fu Paradise, two were from Seafood Paradise outlets, and one each was from Paradise Group Holdings, Paradise Dynasty, Paradise Pavilion, Taste Paradise and Canton Paradise.

They include outlets in Changi Airport, Suntec, Marina Boulevard, Orchard Road, East Coast Road and Jurong East Central.

amirh@sph.com.sg

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WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama will host Singapore’s prime minister for talks on a stalled trans-Pacific trade pact, maritime tensions with China and a prestigious White House state dinner.

The White House said Obama would host Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on August 2, hoping to woo an ally that has “served as an anchor for the US rebalance to Asia.”

Lee is the son of longtime Singapore leader Lee Kuan Yew, a trusted confidant to a string of US presidents.

Lee Hsien Loong, 64, became Singapore’s third prime minister in 2004.

“The two leaders will discuss how our relationship can continue to address international challenges and advance a rules-based order for the Asia-Pacific,” the White House said.

Obama visited Singapore in 2009 for a regional summit and has faced pressure to make a symbolic bilateral visit to the country.

But with time running out in his presidency, Obama will instead have to offer the pomp and circumstance of an official visit.

Singapore has been a key player in pushing through the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a regional trade deal that has yet to be ratified.

And while cautioning that South East Asian countries must not get stuck in the middle of US-Chinese rivalry, Singapore has also developed deep military and security ties with the United States.

It has also backed Obama’s calls for territorial disputes in the South China Sea to be settled peacefully and through talks or arbitration.

WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama will host Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the White House for an official visit and state dinner on Aug. 2, the White House said on Wednesday.