SINGAPORE – Over 3,500 runners took part in the Men’s Health Urbanathlon (MHU) today – Singapore’s original obstacle race organised by SPH Magazines. Amongst them were Singapore’s leading radio personalities and local sports stars racing on alongside fellow Urbanathletes.

One of the toughest obstacle races in Singapore, the annual Urbanathlon was the weekend’s most talked about fitness event on social media with the #sharethepain campaign. The hashtag was kick-started by ONE FM 91.3 DJ Glenn Ong, who challenged a close buddy and his fellow colleagues to run the Urbanathlon.

Joining Glenn in the race were ONE FM 91.3 personalities Cheryl Miles, Elliot Danker, Harry Corro, Andre Hoeden and Shaun Tupaz – along with Fox Sports presenter Kelly Latimer, S-League footballer Fabian Kwok and local football icon Aleksandar Duric.

But they were not the only ones inspired to be part of the Urbanathlon – ONE FM 91.3 DJs Melody Chen and Desiree Lai were also broadcasting live at the race village.

Fuelled by camaraderie and competitive fun, this year’s MHU introduced a unique CrossFit element – never before seen in any run in Singapore. Named Metcon Madness, participants were tasked to complete five popular exercises from one of the toughest sports right now.

Challenging both experienced Urbanathletes and newcomers alike were new obstacles like Barrier Breakers, where Urbanathletes conquered a series of straight and sloping walls; Side Walk, where participants spidey sideways across a metal structure; and the spectacular Final Obstacle, where runners zip-lined into a pool of water and ended the race high – and not dry.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Men’s Health

Men’s Health Urbanathlon winners

Following a morning full of grit and endurance, Jason Lawrence, who came in first, blew away spectators with an impressive timing of 58 minutes and 1 second. He walked home with $11,653 worth of prizes. Runner-up Jite also left the crowds cheering as he crossed the finish line in 58 minutes and 37 seconds, followed closely by Bijay Kumar Sunuwar, coming in in third place, who completed the Urbanathlon in 59 minutes and 7 seconds.

Running together to #sharethepain

The Men’s Health Urbanathlon 2016 featured six of Singapore’s leading radio personalities competing in the event for the very first time. While they each have their own personal goals and motivations, which are as varied and unique as the Urbanathletes themselves, the ONE FM 91.3 DJs all shared the same desire to challenge themselves at the MHU and inspire listeners to follow suit.

For Glenn, ONE FM’s #1 Breakfast Show DJ, his experience proved to be a rewarding one. “I talked to people who had taken part in previous six Urbanathlons, and all agreed this was the most challenging Urbanathlon so far. So, I’m glad to have been a part of the toughest of them all.”

Radio DJ Cheryl Miles was equally pumped up. “I think all of us made it to the finishing line because we stuck together. We weren’t competing for speed or time; we wanted to do it together. If you have the right group of people, take your time; it’s more about finishing the race together.”

Unsurprisingly, ONE FM producer and former commando Shaun Tupaz was amongst the fastest in the group, joking that, “It was easy!” He adds: “Come with your best friends, it’s very fun, nothing to be scared about. It’s a social thing yet you still challenge yourself. Forget every marathon, every other race, this is the race to be at.”

Ms Pang Lee Cheng, General Manager, SPH Magazines said: “It’s great to see everyone have fun at the Urbanathlon, and meet loyal readers and participants who return year after year. We’re proud that the Urbanathlon has always been an exciting place for Men’s Health and its partners to engage our readers, Singapore runners and die-hard Urbanathletes. The well-designed concept and race village connects sponsors to an audience keen on health, fitness and fun activities they can experience with friends.

The excitement did not end after runners completed their race. After collecting their finishers’ T-shirts and medals, the participants were rewarded with complimentary beer and light bites, while participating in exciting booth activities.

About The Men’s Health Urbanathlon

The Singapore Men’s Health Urbanathlon is organised by SPH Magazines, presented by Tigerair and Scoot, and supported by Sport Singapore. Adidas is the official apparel and ONE FM 91.3 is the official media for Urbanathlon. Main sponsors include 100Plus, Lab Series and Goodyear. Partners include Isagenix, Mount Alvernia Hospital and Virgin Active.

For more information, please visit http://urbanathlon.menshealth.com.sg/2016/.

SINGAPORE – Over 3,500 runners took part in the Men’s Health Urbanathlon (MHU) today – Singapore’s original obstacle race organised by SPH Magazines. Amongst them were Singapore’s leading radio personalities and local sports stars racing on alongside fellow Urbanathletes.

One of the toughest obstacle races in Singapore, the annual Urbanathlon was the weekend’s most talked about fitness event on social media with the #sharethepain campaign. The hashtag was kick-started by ONE FM 91.3 DJ Glenn Ong, who challenged a close buddy and his fellow colleagues to run the Urbanathlon.

Joining Glenn in the race were ONE FM 91.3 personalities Cheryl Miles, Elliot Danker, Harry Corro, Andre Hoeden and Shaun Tupaz – along with Fox Sports presenter Kelly Latimer, S-League footballer Fabian Kwok and local football icon Aleksandar Duric.

But they were not the only ones inspired to be part of the Urbanathlon – ONE FM 91.3 DJs Melody Chen and Desiree Lai were also broadcasting live at the race village.

Fuelled by camaraderie and competitive fun, this year’s MHU introduced a unique CrossFit element – never before seen in any run in Singapore. Named Metcon Madness, participants were tasked to complete five popular exercises from one of the toughest sports right now.

Challenging both experienced Urbanathletes and newcomers alike were new obstacles like Barrier Breakers, where Urbanathletes conquered a series of straight and sloping walls; Side Walk, where participants spidey sideways across a metal structure; and the spectacular Final Obstacle, where runners zip-lined into a pool of water and ended the race high – and not dry.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Men’s Health

Men’s Health Urbanathlon winners

Following a morning full of grit and endurance, Jason Lawrence, who came in first, blew away spectators with an impressive timing of 58 minutes and 1 second. He walked home with $11,653 worth of prizes. Runner-up Jite also left the crowds cheering as he crossed the finish line in 58 minutes and 37 seconds, followed closely by Bijay Kumar Sunuwar, coming in in third place, who completed the Urbanathlon in 59 minutes and 7 seconds.

Running together to #sharethepain

The Men’s Health Urbanathlon 2016 featured six of Singapore’s leading radio personalities competing in the event for the very first time. While they each have their own personal goals and motivations, which are as varied and unique as the Urbanathletes themselves, the ONE FM 91.3 DJs all shared the same desire to challenge themselves at the MHU and inspire listeners to follow suit.

For Glenn, ONE FM’s #1 Breakfast Show DJ, his experience proved to be a rewarding one. “I talked to people who had taken part in previous six Urbanathlons, and all agreed this was the most challenging Urbanathlon so far. So, I’m glad to have been a part of the toughest of them all.”

Radio DJ Cheryl Miles was equally pumped up. “I think all of us made it to the finishing line because we stuck together. We weren’t competing for speed or time; we wanted to do it together. If you have the right group of people, take your time; it’s more about finishing the race together.”

Unsurprisingly, ONE FM producer and former commando Shaun Tupaz was amongst the fastest in the group, joking that, “It was easy!” He adds: “Come with your best friends, it’s very fun, nothing to be scared about. It’s a social thing yet you still challenge yourself. Forget every marathon, every other race, this is the race to be at.”

Ms Pang Lee Cheng, General Manager, SPH Magazines said: “It’s great to see everyone have fun at the Urbanathlon, and meet loyal readers and participants who return year after year. We’re proud that the Urbanathlon has always been an exciting place for Men’s Health and its partners to engage our readers, Singapore runners and die-hard Urbanathletes. The well-designed concept and race village connects sponsors to an audience keen on health, fitness and fun activities they can experience with friends.

The excitement did not end after runners completed their race. After collecting their finishers’ T-shirts and medals, the participants were rewarded with complimentary beer and light bites, while participating in exciting booth activities.

About The Men’s Health Urbanathlon

The Singapore Men’s Health Urbanathlon is organised by SPH Magazines, presented by Tigerair and Scoot, and supported by Sport Singapore. Adidas is the official apparel and ONE FM 91.3 is the official media for Urbanathlon. Main sponsors include 100Plus, Lab Series and Goodyear. Partners include Isagenix, Mount Alvernia Hospital and Virgin Active.

For more information, please visit http://urbanathlon.menshealth.com.sg/2016/.

For more than 20 years, Mr Zaher Wahab, 34, has kept his 1994 ticket to the Malaysia Cup football final. The little stub is pressed neatly between two plastic sheets which, in turn, are sandwiched between the pages of a book.

Finally, to ensure the ticket is protected, the teacher keeps everything in an airtight plastic box.

His prized possession, however, will soon have a new home – the SG50 Time Capsule.

To be sealed this Friday by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at Gardens by the Bay, it will contain 50 items voted by the public as most representative of Singapore’s identity and journey as a nation.

Items include old maps of Singapore, old character and citizenship education textbooks and a Singa the Courtesy Lion figurine.

This initiative is spearheaded by the SG50 Programme Office, which put out a list of 60 items for the public to vote on. The public could also propose new items.

Between Sept 21 and Nov 1 last year, about 45,000 votes were cast through the SG50 website, an interactive exhibition at the National Museum of Singapore and digital selection booths placed in selected locations. The programme office also received more than 300 item suggestions.

The top 50 items were chosen based on their popularity.

The top four items and item clusters proposed by Singaporeans were “Communications devices over the years”, “Items related to our hawker centre food culture”, “Singapore Passport” and “SG50 memorabilia”.

Assistant administrative officer Ng Le Eng, 62, donated her rare blue Singapore Restricted Passport to the capsule. The blue passport was used for travel to Malaysia, but became invalid after Dec 31, 1999, and the red Singapore International Passport became the only valid document for travel out of Singapore.

Madam Ng was one of about 360,000 people then who held only the blue passport.

She had applied for it at a cost of $7.50 in 1973, thinking there would be a chance for her to travel to Malaysia, but did not get to do so before the passport became obsolete.

Parting with it was not a hard decision, says the grandmother of two. “It’s more meaningful to give this away than to keep it in my drawer. This way, my grandchildren and younger generations get to see how things looked like in the past.”

Communications specialist Lisa Marie Tan, 42, had no difficulty donating her Motorola Bravo Pager either. It is featured under “Communications devices over the years”.

A gift from her then boyfriend in 1996, it was meant to help him get in touch with her and for her to be easily contactable in her job then as a crime reporter with The New Paper.

But now, it is “no longer of any use”, which is why she donated it.

“I did take a picture of it before giving it away, though. In case I never see it again,” she says.

Mr Zaher also took photographs of the items he donated to the capsule, which will be opened in 2065 – in time for SG100.

Besides the ticket, he also donated a commemorative T-shirt printed by The New Paper for the 1994 Malaysia Cup match.

He has fond memories of that match at the Shah Alam Stadium in Selangor, Malaysia, as it was his first time watching a football game overseas.

Singapore won the Cup that year, trouncing Pahang 4-0. That was also the year that Singapore last won the Cup.

“Because those memories are precious, the items are dear to me,” he says.

“Hopefully, when the capsule is opened in 2065, we would be back playing in the Cup and we would have won again.”

1 Old National Library card, 1980s The old National Library in Stamford Road was torn down in 2004 to make way for a tunnel, but many Singaporeans remember the sleepy, red-bricked building fondly. The library’s old-school paraphernalia, such as this old library card, evoke a pre-digital age when books were checked out manually by librarians.

2 ERP in-vehicle unit, 1990s Singapore’s Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system, represented here by the ERP in-vehicle unit, was the first to be implemented in the world to tackle road congestion. The installation of the unit – a gadget that automatically deducts charges from a stored-value card – began in 1997. The unit communicates with the antennae on ERP gantries for the deduction of tolls.

3 Memorabilia related to the Singapore Lions, 1990s-2010s These items are donated by fans of Singapore’s national football team over the years. They range from a T-shirt to ticket stubs of the matches.

4 Military uniforms and model of SAR 21 rifle, 2010s The Singapore army is one of the most modern and advanced in South-east Asia. These military uniforms are digital camouflage combat uniforms of the (from left) Singapore Navy, Airforce and Army. The SAR 21, which was developed in Singapore and is used by the Singapore Armed Forces, ranks as one of the world’s most advanced assault rifles.

5 Items related to HDB housing, 1960s-1990s The Housing Board was set up in 1960 with the aim of producing affordable, quality public housing to a fast-growing population. Today, more than 80 per cent of Singapore’s population lives in public housing built by the HDB, across 23 towns and three estates. These items – house keys, flat unit number and an old light switch – will be familiar to many HDB-dwelling Singaporeans.

6 Campaign posters, 2010s These posters encourage Singaporeans to save resources such as water and energy. Singapore’s social campaigns span many areas, from health and cleanliness to family planning and environmental concerns. Over the years, the Government has urged Singaporeans to, among other things, Stop At Two (children), speak Mandarin, flush the toilet, plant trees and be more courteous.

7 Items related to our hawker centre food culture, 1970s-2000s Hopefully in 50 years, Singapore will still be using, in some form, these classic bowls, cups, saucers and traditional coffee socks, all of which are integral elements of Singapore’s kopitiam scene.

8 Communications devices over the years, 1970s-2000s Mobile device usage has been part of Singaporeans’ lives for a few decades. The communications devices have taken different forms, such as pagers, clunky handsets and the sleek multipurpose smartphones of today – a selection of which are going into the capsule.

9 Food and nutritional products manufactured or that had research and development offices in Singapore, 1980s-2010s Many local and multi-national companies have made Singapore their base for product development. The brands include food group Nestle, pharmaceutical company Wyeth and biscuit company Khong Guan.

10 Ten-year Series books for O and A Levels, 1970s-1990s If you have been through the Singapore education system, chances are you will have bittersweet memories of these examination preparation books, which contain test papers from previous years.

brynasim@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on March 13, 2016.
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English, Mathematics and yes, Chinese.

These subjects are still in demand, but there are also other unconventional subjects that form the core of the $1 billion private tuition industry here.

Private tuition is as commonplace as myopia here. A poll last year revealed that six in 10 parents enrolled their secondary school children in extra classes.

Increasingly, parents are also seeking help for non-conventional subjects like coding and other niche subjects.

Epigami is a tuition agency that has the usual offerings of the sciences, maths and languages.

But it also offers to help pair students with tutors for the Punjabi language, programming and even pharmaceutical chemistry.

Epigami’s founder Victor du Mesnil du Buisson, 26, says: “We have rather exotic subjects, but every subject that is listed means someone has enquired about it before.”

Mr Kabilen Sornum, 31, teaches secondary school students maths and principles of accounts, but he also tutors students in business studies and computer studies.

He currently has three students who learn maths from him, two who do business studies and one for computer studies.

Mr Sornum started giving tuition 10 years ago. He holds master’s degrees in both computer engineering and business administration.

EXPERIENCE

“Due to my experience in these fields, I know what’s required and can help students who need it,” he says.

Do the tutors apply a different method of teaching non-core subjects like computer science?

Mr Sornum says: “Although it’s niche, it’s pretty much the same. I apply the same methods of teaching.”

Miss Valerie Chai, who is a business studies tutor, says: “It’s all about strategy. It’s about spotting how the questions are being asked and coming up with answers that are generally good.”

Mr Sornum adds: “Parents can be demanding when they understand the subjects that are being taught.

“Parents know the usual subjects more, so when it comes to ones that they might not know, they might be less demanding.”

Most of these teachers are found by their students through online tuition agencies like Epigami.

Usually, these sites categorise tutors by their subjects and interested parties can do a simple search to find help for the subject they are looking for.

Mr Victor says: “They can either choose a tutor or tell us what they want and we’ll find help for them.”

People who are interested in becoming teachers sign up with these agencies, who then verify their credentials.

These tutors indicate what subjects they can teach and are then added to the list.

Although there is help available for all sorts of subjects, the demand is not consistent.

Mr Vignesh Vaidhyanathan Seshan has a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the National University of Singapore and offers help with electrical technology and applications, a subject taught at some secondary schools to students in the normal technical stream.

It has been more than a year since he started offering the service, but no one has approached him yet.

Mr Vignesh says: “I have the experience and went through the syllabus. I could teach it, but my students ask to learn maths from me instead.”

Similarly, Mr Syahrulnizam Abdul Rahman, 38, advertises online that he can teach music to O-level students but has yet to receive any students for the subject.

Although the thriving tuition industry means that help is available for many subjects here, not everyone is big on it.

WORRY

Mr Bhajan Singh, 70, a retired secondary school principal, says that while some students may need supplementary coaching, he worries about over-working the children.

Mr Singh says: “Tuition should never replace school.

“Parents might think that it could be helping their children, but cramming in tuition after school might add to their frustrations.

“It could even be counter-productive and their results could dip.”

This article was first published on March 13, 2016.
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Being disabled is not being unable.

That was the theme of guest-of-honour Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean’s speech at Bizlink Centre’s inaugural golf charity event and appreciation dinner at Jurong Country Club on Friday.

And in praising the efforts of Bizlink – whose mission is “Empowering Our Disadvantaged Singaporeans Through Employment” – who raised $75,000 through the golf event and dinner, DPM Teo, also Coordinating Minister for National Security, said: “In the past three decades, Bizlink has assisted more than 10,000 persons with disabilities and special needs to be more independent, and to play a role in the community through employment.

“Bizlink has grown from providing vocational assessment and employment-placement services to become leading sheltered employers with seven social enterprises providing employment and training opportuities for the disadvantaged, especially persons with disabilities.”

Among the golfers and diners were 15 representatives who leave on March 22 for the Abilympics – the Olympics of Abilities – in Bordeaux, France.

There was significant interest in the golf event on Bizlink’s 30th anniversary celebrations and, after a close contest, Timothy Lazaroo emerged champion on countback.

In the System 36 stableford format, Lazaroo (90 gross) amassed 37 points. Second was Cheng Heng Wee (88), also 37 points, while Bert Chow finished third on gross 83 and 36 points.

This article was first published on March 13, 2016.
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It might have been 30 years, but he remembers it like it was yesterday. Florist Bernard Chiang, then 35, was working at his shop in Lorong Lew Lian at Upper Serangoon Road on the afternoon of March 15, 1986, when he heard on the radio: “Emergency! Hotel New World has collapsed.”

Mr Chiang said: “I dropped the flowers I was holding and called my superiors. We were trained for this and we had to help.”

At the time, Mr Chiang was the company commander for the Braddell Heights Civil Defence volunteer company, a group of residents trained to respond in emergencies.

After getting his superiors’ approval to mobilise his men, he rallied them. Within the hour, Mr Chiang and about 30 men were on their way to the collapsed hotel with their equipment and uniforms.

He recalls seeing the site for the first time: “It really was beyond words. When buildings collapse, they usually fall to one side but Hotel New World was flattened and stacked, like a sandwich.”

There was no time to waste.

Mr Chiang and his men got to work, helping to clear the rubble, unearth survivors and carry out the dead.

The devastation around them was nothing they had ever imagined but Mr Chiang and his men persisted, staying at the site for a week.

“We were a group of everyday people. I was a florist, some of them were teachers, engineers or even unemployed,” he says.

“It was tiring but we couldn’t stop – not when we knew we could help.”

Mr Chiang and his company were not the only ones who volunteered that day. Mr Kelvin Tan, 51, was then serving his national service as an instructor at the school of combat engineers.

When the six-storey hotel collapsed, Mr Tan’s commander asked if anyone wanted to help. Almost on instinct, Mr Tan volunteered. Although he was told that he could only go at night and had to come back for training during the day, he accepted.

Mr Tan says: “I did not get much sleep but the decision was obvious.”

RUBBLE

Together with a friend, they helped to clear the rubble, transport resources to the rescuers and reassure relatives of the injured.

Mr Tan says he was disturbed by what he saw. “Seeing all that destruction in front of my eyes was indescribable,” he recalls.

“They let me in because of my uniform but around the cordon, I could see people waiting for their relatives who could be trapped. It was really sad.”

The collapse of the Hotel New World – which trapped 50 people, killed 33 and injured 17 – is considered to be the deadliest civil disaster in Singapore’s history.

Five years after the collapse, construction work for a new seven-storey hotel started and in 1994, the Fortuna Hotel opened.

This article was first published on March 13, 2016.
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Last Thursday, a woman was jailed for framing her maid by planting jewellery in her luggage and calling the cops. Why do employers do this?

It was nine months of hell for Filipino maid Juvy.

In April 2014, she filed a complaint with the Ministry of Manpower for non-payment of salary. But her employer then filed a police report against her, accusing her of theft.

When no evidence was found, the charge was dropped.

But her employer did not stop there, filing another police report accusing her of child molest. Again, in October, the case was closed.

So the employer filed another claim of theft against her. This, too, was later dropped by the police.

Throughout this time, Juvy stayed at a shelter at Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home).

For the nine months she was under investigation, she was barred from finding work and could only wait until investigation concluded.

This is just one of many cases encountered by the welfare organisation for migrant workers.

Such tactics are not new but it is rare to see such justice meted out to employers who make false accusations, say Home executive director Jolovan Wham.

That is because unlike what happened in the case involving the preschool teacher, cases are rarely as clear-cut.

Mr Wham says: “In that case, the employer had come clean and confessed that she lied. But in most of the cases we have seen, they didn’t.”

‘GIFT’

One tactic he observed was employers giving their maids something valuable as a present. But when a dispute happened, this “gift” became stolen loot, and the maid was accused of a crime.

Mr Wham says his organisation has been campaigning against such poor employment practices for a long time.

“Stories like Juvy’s is testament to how access to justice is elusive for many domestic workers,” explains Mr Wham, adding that the maid has since returned to the Philippines.

ABOUT THE CASE

Upset with her maid for wanting to return to India, Desai Asti Amit decided to frame her.

The 36-year-old pre-school teacher planted a gold pendant and a metal prayer cup in her maid’s luggage last year.

When these items were uncovered during an inspection, she accused Ms Kimei Dangmei of theft and the police were notified.

But Desai’s conscience was pricked, and she later admitted in a police statement that she had lied.

Last Thursday, Deputy Public Prosecutor James Low said that Desai was angry with Ms Kimei and wanted to get even with her.

Desai was jailed seven weeks after pleading guilty to one count of giving false information to a police officer. She could have been jailed up to a year and fined up to $5,000.

Employers just want to avoid transfer fees

Maid agencies tell The New Paper on Sunday that when a dispute happens, some employers are prone to imply that their maids are dishonest.

The most common allegation is theft.

Island Maids director Gabriel Ee says: “We have encountered many instances of employers accusing their maids of theft.

“When this happens, we take the maid under our care but all expenses such as accommodation and food will have to be borne by the client.”

Maid agencies will also attempt to figure out what happened although their ability to do so is limited, says Mr Ee.

This is because in most cases, employers are unable to provide solid evidence for their accusations.

Mr Ee says: “We ask for details and evidence when they accuse the maid of theft. Most of the time, the response from the employer is they ‘think’ or ‘feel’ that the maid did it.

“In the end, it would turn out to be a miscommunication or misunderstanding over the things that went missing.”

He adds that if employers have the hard evidence, such as closed-circuit television footage of the act, then the agency would advise them to go to the authorities.

But what happens if evidence is scant and it is simply one word against another?

A spokesman for Striker Employment Agency says maid agencies are poor arbitrators for such cases because the parties involved have plenty of reasons to distort the truth.

The spokesman adds: “We have seen cases where employers lie about the maids for many reasons, such as jealousy at the husband’s attention to the maid.

“At the same time, there are maids who deliberately try to anger their employers in order to void their contract and return home.”

Ultimately, these accusations can cause distress to maids, especially when a police report is made against them, says Mr Ee.

This is because their work permits will be cancelled and they are given a “special” pass instead, allowing them to stay in Singapore while investigations continue.

In many cases, false or unclear theft allegations get thrown around because either party – the maid or the employers – want a transfer.

RUSE

Ms Christie Foo of Total Maid Agency suggests that such implications of dishonesty could be a ruse, rather than only being out of spite.

She says: “Some employers may use this type of tactics because their intention might be to have a change of maids but they do not want to pay the full cost of doing so.”

For many maid agencies, employers have to pay a transfer or placement fee if they wish to have a change of maid before the contract is up.

This can cost around $300 or more, says Ms Foo.

“By saying that the maid’s attitude is bad or that she stole something from them, employers hope that agencies would waive these fees.”

Mr Ee agrees: “We find that when some clients want a change of maids, they put that thought in us that it is due to dishonesty and embellish their story with accounts of how the maid could have taken something.

“They may find reasons, like theft, to get the transfer costs waived.”

While his agency tries to bring peace between the two parties, such as through mediation sessions, it can be an uphill task, he says.

“As a maid agency, we are caught in the crossfire,” says Mr Ee.

This article was first published on March 13, 2016.
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