SINGAPORE: As he poses for a photograph on the sidelines of a Young Lions training session, kit man Omar Mohamed is delicately trying to speed things up.

“Is this okay? Enough? All okay?” he asks, a furtive eye aimed at the group of youngsters about to sprint his way.

Too late.

The thump of boots turn into cries of laughter. 

“Celebrity la!”: the youngsters rib.

“You see, I told you that they would disturb me,” the 61-year-old says bashfully.

Players have quick chats with Omar prior to the training session, coaches include him in their team talk, backroom staff even interrupt his interview to tease him – this is a kit man accepted and respected.

JACK OF ALL TRADES, MASTERING A NEW ONE

A former dispatch rider, taxi driver and air-conditioner repairman, Omar’s path to becoming a kit man has been rather unorthodox.

“I knew Fandi back then, and he was also my favourite player,” said Omar, who recalls being introduced by the late Singapore international Nasir Jalil.

“Sometimes when I saw him, I would say hello and that’s how he knew me. 

“Once he said: ‘Omar, my aircon has a problem, so I went to his house to do it … When I was doing the servicing at his home, he asked me: ‘Omar, can you help my friend Kadir (Yahya)? The role is to be a part time kit man.'”

Despite being a football fan, Omar had to take some time to mull over the opportunity to help Kadir’s national Under-16 side.

“I had no experience. I had to think about it first, because I was busy working at the shipping company as a dispatch rider and was also a part-time taxi driver,” Omar explained. “I discussed it with Kadir – he said: ‘Don’t worry – if you’re free, just come. Any time after four, you can come, Omar. I will help you also.’ I felt at ease after that .”

For the next two years, Omar continued to juggle his other part-time roles, while familiarising himself with the new job.

While he got used to the routine of preparing jerseys and equipment, there were times where Omar had to go above and beyond.

Take resistance bands – which were not available as part of the training equipment. So Omar improvised.

“Last time we never bought all these things, I would go to a factory in Woodlands to get them. And it was free, they didn’t want them and threw it out so I collected them,” he recalled.

“It was for special training sessions. We kept it after.”

In 2006, Omar was offered the role as kit man for the national team, an opportunity he could not resist.

He said: “Of course I wanted it … I didn’t think I could be the national kit man.”

It was a job which would involve a certain level of confidentiality as well, he found out.

“During the interview they told me: ‘You must keep everything confidential, you cannot tell people things about the players.”

“Last time some of the media would ask me about the players – I said: ‘I don’t know. If you ask me about what they drink, their jersey number and colour, I can tell you. If you ask me what the players do, I don’t know anything.’

“That’s not my job, it is for the coach to say.”

Omar was not only responsible for kitting out the national side, but the Young Lions – the team which back then consisted of local U-23 players featuring in the domestic league – as well.

This meant going full-time, and taking a pay cut.

“When I worked dispatch, my salary was better than what I got (as a kit man). Because while working as a dispatch rider, I had other part time work also,” explained Omar, who could bring in between five to six thousand monthly. 

“Even my wife was also surprised (by the decision).”

‘HE WILL GO THE EXTRA MILE’

Omar’s role involves a significant amount of preparation.

“Normally I stand by four hours before (a training session),” he explained. “I prepare everything. Cones, balls, markers, drinks, the ice.”

One set of markers, 22 balls, 10 bibs of three different colours – he rattles off some of the numbers.

During a match day, he meticulously lays out the players’ kit and painstakingly matches their socks with the kit.

This is easier said than done as some players cut specific shapes in their full-length socks and wear these on top of an extra pair of socks.

“You must make the player comfortable to play,” explained Omar.

And Omar’s dedication to his job has won him the trust of players and staff alike.

“He is very close to the players, he works well with the coaches, he is always on time,” Fandi told CNA. “He will even work extra after working hours – sometimes even on days off, he comes to do extra work to prepare for the boys. Even when he is at home and there is some request from the coaches or players, he will attend to it. 

“He will find a way to make it happen … He is very honest and hardworking. He will go the extra mile, you can depend on him. Rain or shine, he will be there.”

Omar shares a close bond with the players – in particular, Singapore skipper Hariss Harun, who also was a part of Kadir’s U-16 side.

Said Omar: “Hariss is like my son. When I do my packing, he will come to my room and help me. We will pack and talk.”

WITHIN SPITTING DISTANCE

Omar shares the highs and lows of the various sides which he helps to kit out. There have been instances where several minutes before the end of the matches, he would head straight to the dressing room because of how nervous he is.

“Sometimes I cry because we lose,” he shared. “I was really sad when we played against Jordan. We lost there and needed just a draw to get to another round (of the Asian Cup qualifiers).”

“I believe every kit man would feel the same. You work so hard because of them, of course you want to win.”

And when the team faces hostility from the stands, Omar too is in the line of fire.

“In the Malaysia Cup, I got spat at,” he recalled. “Irwan Shah had been red carded (for now defunct Singapore side Lions XII), I was bringing Irwan into the changing room and the fans spat at us. 

“The policeman said: ‘Just go, just go!'”

Omar can count himself a veteran at the SEA Games, having travelled with the team for the 2007, 2009 and 2013 tournaments. On the three occasions, Singapore finished with a bronze.

“I never realised that three Games I went for, we finished with a bronze in all of them,” he said. “I just do what I need to do. I just perform my responsibilities first, so there will be no complaints from players and coaches.”

There’s the added hassle of logistics at the tournament, where there is always a rush to wash laundry at the Games village, said Omar.

“In the village, every team wants to wash their laundry. So you must queue,” he explained. “If a jersey is lost, there will be problems. But, so far so good, I hope it will never happen. I bring spares also in case.

“After the laundry is done, I check the jerseys one by one. First I have to check the flag, koyak (torn) or not. Then the number, then name, then I’ll start to fold the jerseys.”

With the clock ticking down on this year’s edition of the Games which will begin in late November, Omar believes that the Singapore side can go one better than bronze.

“Before I leave, retire, I hope we can get a gold medal,” he added. “I believe it is possible.”

And Omar’s involvement will be key, added Fandi.

“It is very important for him to be at the SEA Games,” said the head coach.  “He has the exposure, the experience, many years, more than ten years of experience doing this job, and it’s hard to find another person like him.”

And Omar may not be a celebrity, but clearly to the team, the 61-year-old is already a star.

SINGAPORE: Unmarried women with no children are more likely than married women to provide care for parents ageing at home.

This was the key finding in AWARE’s latest year-long research project studying the impact of family caregiving on caregivers’ retirement adequacy in Singapore.

This surprised us. We did not set out to interview unmarried women, but were interested in family members caring for ageing parents while living with them. Yet most of the 22 women we interviewed turned out to be single.

What we have since also discovered is that this trend is by no means unique to Singapore. Women make up vast numbers of caregivers all around the world.

Research in the US has found that unmarried daughters, daughters who live close to their parents, unemployed daughters and daughters without siblings are all much more likely to be parental caregivers.

Why is this so? Most caregivers we interviewed reported feeling like they had no choice but to assume the role because of their gender and unmarried status. 

When asked why she was a caregiver, one of our respondents, Xin Yi* (aged 54), best summed it up: “Because I am single, and I am a woman.”

Although most had more than three siblings (only one was an only child), their brothers and sisters were not assigned caregiving responsibilities because they had their own children to look after.

READ: Commentary: It is high time for a Ministry on Ageing Issues

At first sight, it may seem like a sensible division of labour for filial caregiving responsibilities to fall on the sibling with the fewest family responsibilities. After all, she doesn’t have many demands for her time – not to mention her income.

But might this approach be short-sighted? Perhaps we should also take into account each individual’s likelihood of having future caregiving support – i.e. whether or not she has a family to support her in old age, as eldercare drains her of her own savings.

IMPACT ON A CAREGIVER’S RETIREMENT ADEQUACY

AWARE’s study focused on the impact of caregiving on four retirement factors: Employment, income, expenses and wealth.

Overall, we found that caregiving responsibilities compromise a caregiver’s ability to continue working. This also impacts her disposable income, as respondents with employment changes suffered a 63 per cent average loss in income, while out-of-pocket care-related expenses can balloon to more than a third of her monthly household income after subsidies.

Most of our respondents either reduced the number of hours they worked or stopped working entirely.

There are no specific national-level numbers of people who have reduced their work hours because of caregiving – but the 2018 Labour Force Survey found that 75,800 women have quit work entirely to care for older relatives.

Why is caregiving so incompatible with work? It comes down to three main reasons. First, the need to provide frequent supervision, especially for seniors prone to fainting spells or sudden falls.

Second, the poor and unpredictable health of seniors who need care, who typically require immediate attention and emergency hospital admissions.

Third, the temperamental nature of care recipients with dementia.

READ: Commentary: The hidden strength of those caring for loved ones with dementia

Some respondents tried to manage these challenges and juggle work commitments by hiring foreign domestic workers (FDWs).

Yet they found that many caregiving responsibilities, such as emotional care, went beyond what a FDW could provide. Additional support from siblings was also often unreliable and limited.

CARING FOR OTHERS VERSUS SAVING FOR YOUR OLD AGE

Singapore’s last known quantitative study on informal caregiving, conducted in 2011, found that most family caregivers of seniors over 75 were aged 45 to 59 – the age when most people are building savings for their retirement.

As women are expected to live well into their mid-80s, how will they afford care in their old age if they cannot save for themselves at midlife?

According to CPF statistics, about four in 10 active CPF members who turned 55 in 2017 did not hit the Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) of S$83,000 in their retirement accounts. Women outnumbered men in this category.

There has been no significant improvement on this front: The percentage difference between men and women achieving BRS has stayed roughly the same over the last three years.

READ: Commentary: Caregivers are getting some support but deserve more care

What’s more, this data only includes active CPF members – employed workers who have received a contribution to their CPF accounts in the last three months.

However, caregivers spend a median of nine years outside the labour force providing care to their families, not earning an income or receiving any CPF contributions, according to a Parliament Reply by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo. There is no retirement savings data on this group to begin with. 

Caregivers with spouses and children can take comfort that even if they cannot afford their own care in old age, they can turn to immediate family members.

Wai Ching*, a respondent of ours who cares for a mother with dementia, does not have that option.

“My mum is fortunate … she still has children,” Wai Ching told us in her interview. “I will not be so fortunate.”

READ: Commentary: Navigating the new road to modern elderhood

Wai Ching’s situation will be increasingly more common. There were 87,500 single women between the ages of 40 to 59 years in 2017, Singapore’s annual Population in Brief revealed. Even more are staying single across all age groups compared to a decade ago.

It’s a sad irony that caregivers like her, who enable their parents to age in the comfort of their homes, are much more likely to end up ageing with great difficulty.

MAKE CARE EASIER

Family caregiving is a glue that holds family units together. Caregivers put the needs of their loved ones first, often to the neglect of their own well-being. They deserve more.

Earlier this year, the Government announced some plans to enhance caregiver support. These include expanded respite care options and support networks, and a monthly Home Caregiving Grant of S$200 (applications for which will open next month). All this represents a welcome step forward. Yet care is an issue that calls for bigger strides.

Today, there are no statutory requirements for companies to provide family care leave, though government initiatives encourage employers to offer unpaid caregiving leave. 

This is important, but leaves the financial burden of caring on the shoulders of caregivers.

The Government also provides financial incentives to companies to offer flexible work arrangements to help caregivers balance work and caregiving responsibilities. Although a crucial first step, in our culture of presenteeism and emphasis on face time, many employers still base worker appraisals on their physical presence in the office.

Finally, the various measures in place to offset care-related expenses do not compensate caregivers for the loss in income and retirement savings that often accompanies the provision of care.

As an ageing population that will rely heavily on caregivers, it is worth reviewing providing stronger financial support for caregiving, including paid eldercare leave, a statutory right to flexible work arrangements, and caregivers’ support grant with cash and CPF contributions.

This third measure, arguably the most critical, would offset out-of-pocket expenses and help caregivers build retirement adequacy while caring for others.

READ: Commentary: Three stories from caregivers show we still undervalue caregiving

These actions would help all caregivers to older persons – male or female, married or unmarried. But they would go furthest to boost single, female caregivers’ chances to age with dignity and comfort.

Let’s ensure that the good daughters of today do not become the impoverished elderly of tomorrow. 

*The names used in this commentary are pseudonyms.

Shailey Hingorani is Head of Research and Advocacy, AWARE. AWARE will be holding Make Care Count … in the National Budget at NVPC on Oct 5, an event where the public can suggest care-related recommendations for AWARE to submit to the 2020 Singapore Budget.  

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans came together on Saturday (Sep 28) as part of the first session of the Citizens’ Panel on Work-Life Harmony to discuss how work-life balance can be improved.

The panel aims to propose recommendations that will better enable Singaporeans to work in a manner that matches their personal goals.

The discussion on Saturday centered around factors affecting work-life harmony in the context of supporting families. Some of the topics raised include workplace culture, HR practices, flexible work arrangements, and balancing career ambitions with family commitments.

Speaking to participants at the session, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo, who also assists Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean on population matters, said achieving work-life harmony boils down to the concept of social norms.

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“When something has to do with social norms, we know that it is probably going to be far more effective, going to produce better results, if we can galvanise the whole society to act in concert with one another. A joint effort is what produces better results,” she said.

“So the purpose, I think, of the Citizens’ Panel is to enable everyone to bring your perspectives to the table, and to talk about the kind of things that we need to do as citizens, how we each play a part in order to move forward together to achieve better work-life harmony, to create a better Singapore for ourselves and also for the future generation of Singaporeans.”

Participants included a mix of employers, working parents, singles and retirees to provide a variety of viewpoints on how to design solutions to help Singaporeans have better work-life balance.

The 58 members were chosen from more than 300 members of the public who responded to the call in July to be part of the panel.

READ: 4G leaders will work with Singaporeans to design, implement public policies: DPM Heng

Among them was working mother Kopal Agarwal, who works in the finance sector and has an 11-year-old daughter.

She said that she hopes the constant daily choices she has to make between work and family will eventually become a thing of the past.

“I am hoping to get some ideas and some ways to drive those mindset change in the crowd and make it something not as a privilege,” she added.

“Right now I have work and I have life, and I try to integrate.”

Mr Ng Aik Phong, managing director of Fave, said it was about finding solutions that work for both employers and employees.

“So hopefully, I think, we can as the outcome of this, create solutions that works for us, and that is unique, that will solve the problems that we have, and be hopefully a benchmark or  lighthouse for our future generations and for every other country,” he added.

About 20 per cent of Fave’s 60 employees in the Singapore office are married with children, he explained, and many of his younger employees will eventually reach an age when they will want to settle down and start families.

First announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat in June, the panel will meet for more sessions between September and November to propose new ways to strengthen work-life harmony in Singapore.

The Citizens’ Panel is part of the SG Together movement for the Government to partner Singaporeans to create and deliver solutions across a wide range of policy areas.

The panel will submit their recommendations at the last session on Nov 9. 

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) on Saturday (Sep 28) unveiled a new book – The Way Forward – containing its printed manifesto, which lays out the party’s policies ahead of the next General Election.

The next General Election must happen before April 2021.

READ: Elections Department announces formation of electoral boundaries committee

According to SDP, some policies have been updated but its latest manifesto has “not substantially changed” from previous manifestos.

These updates include changes to its healthcare and education policies, it said.

Citing healthcare plans such as MediShield Life and CareShield Life, SDP chairman Paul Tambyah emphasised the difference between SDP’s proposed healthcare proposal and the current healthcare system.

“It was important to clarify that basically there’s a difference between one single universal healthcare plan, which is what we propose, and the multiple complicated schemes, which is currently in place under the PAP’s MediShield Life, MediSave Fund, employer-funded, CareShield and so on and so forth,” said Dr Tambyah.

He added that while the healthcare budget was “close to” what SDP forecasted, it was “just a matter of more efficient use of the money and making sure it gets to the patients”.

READ: SDP to contest five constituencies at next General Election

READ: SDP calls for scrapping of PSLE, nationalising pre-schools in alternative education policy

Mr Benjamin Pwee, who joined the SDP earlier this year, said that the party also added a “more substantive part geared around the private tuition business” to their education policy.

The party wrote on its website that the private tuition system and the current education system contribute to growing inequality in Singapore.

“Because of the intense syllabi, teachers are under pressure to complete the list of required topics regardless of whether the students understand the material or not,” it said.

“Parents then seek private tuition, a billion-dollar industry, to help their children cope. Richer families can afford such expensive tutoring, leaving poorer families at a disadvantage. This exacerbates the growing divide in socio-economic class in our society.”

Earlier in July, the SDP revealed its alternative education policy, which called for smaller class sizes, nationalisation of pre-schools and scrapping the Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE) and school rankings.

The printed manifesto was launched on Saturday at a public event, where three SDP members – Dr Tambyah, Mr Pwee and Young Democrat member Naresh Subramaniam – gave speeches touching on issues such as climate change, the racial quota for the elected presidency and the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) two-thirds majority in Parliament.

Dr Chee Soon Juan also fielded a question and answer segment from members of the public.

The book outlines a brief version of SDP’s proposed policies, which are also available on its website, the party said. It added that the book is priced at S$39 in commemoration of SDP’s 39 years since its founding.

SINGAPORE: Fried, boiled or steamed, Singaporeans consume well over a million fishballs every day. 

But if you haven’t noticed, fishball prices have been steadily rising over the years – in supermarkets for example, fishballs are now 30 per cent more expensive compared to some 10 years ago.

This is primarily due to the rise in the prices of yellow-tail fish, which is commonly used to make fishballs. And yellow-tail fish, or to be more precise the yellow-tail redbelly fusilier, makes arguably the best type of fishballs.

Most yellow-tail fish sold in Singapore are wild-caught in neighbouring Indonesian waters.

Ferry Susanto, a yellow-tail supplier from Indonesia, pointed out that over the last five years, the selling price of his yellow-tail fish has risen by some 50 per cent to about S$3.20 per kilogram now.

“Many of the (yellow-tail) fish have been caught,” he added. “The supply of the fish is reducing, so the price of the fish is increasing.”

But are consumers in Singapore paying more for fishballs these days simply because of a dwindling supply of the yellow-tail fish or is there more to it? Programme For Food’s Sake! finds out.

YELLOW-TAIL THE BEST

In 2014, Douglas Ng of The Fishball Story opened his first fishball noodle hawker stall but he struggled at selling his noodles for only S$3 because his operational costs, including making fishballs and buying the raw materials for them, were too high.

“I didn’t know how to make a business out of it. I put the cost into consideration and increased the price (by S$0.50). And my business was affected. There was a drop of 30 to 40 per cent. That’s a lot,” he recounted.

Still, Douglas insists on using only high-quality pure fish meat. He said that his fishballs contain mostly yellow-tail fish (which costs about S$11 a kilogram), some salt and water, unlike some other hawkers who opt for cheaper fish to “have a better (profit) margin”.

His fishballs also do not contain starch, which makes them more expensive too. 

Another factor that makes his fishballs more expensive? Making fishballs from scratch, which takes about four hours per day.

“You need to wake up very early to prepare the fish, fillet the fish, mince the meat and then make it into the paste. After that, you need to form it. So the whole process is about four hours. It’s very labour intensive,” he added. 

DoDo brand, one of the largest suppliers of fishballs in Singapore, has transformed the much-loved fishball into a multi-million dollar enterprise. Their factories make some two million fishballs every day.  

Fayy Lim, the deputy chief operating officer (product development) of DoDo Fishball, said they have upped the price of their fishballs in the last two years due to an increase in raw material prices and utility costs, which has risen more than 20 per cent since five years ago.

“And with increasing demand for higher quality products and better food safety management systems, all these processes we put in place require costs (which are) incurred on our part, which is something consumers have not been able to see,” she added. 

But their biggest cost component is the raw material – the yellow-tail fish.

Their fishballs contain at least 50 per cent meat, which is more than the 40 per cent minimum required by Singapore’s food regulations, said Fayy.

“Yellow-tail fish is still the best raw material to get the traditional fishball texture and taste that our Singapore consumers like,” she explained. “And yellow-tail from what I know, is wild-caught. So far there is no farm for yellow-tail fish yet.” 

ILLEGAL FISHING 

Yellow-tail fish is found in abundance in Indonesia’s beautiful Bangka Belitung islands, which are Singapore’s main supplier of yellow-tail. 

But local fishermen have complained that it is harder to catch this fish these days. 

Captain Meon, who uses a traditional fish trap called bubu, said that it is due to competition from fishermen from other parts of Indonesia going after the same haul.  

“Every year, there’s more competition and less catch … Our catch is divided. Back then, there were only 20 fishermen but now there are 50 of them fishing around for the same thing,” he said. “But they are not the only competition. The boats from outside make us, small fishermen, uneasy.”

By “boats from outside”, Meon is referring to foreign boats that are illegally catching seafood in Indonesian waters. 

For many years, Indonesian fishermen suffered great losses as their fish harvest dwindled while foreign boats sold their ill-gotten catch from Indonesian waters below market price. 

Susi Pudjiastuti, Indonesia’s Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said that illegal, unregulated fishing has affected their economy, fisheries and also depleted fish stock.

So in 2014, Indonesia declared a war against poachers – it deployed an ambitious fisheries enforcement programme which includes frequent sea patrols, seizing illegal fishing vessels and banning the use of trawling nets.

Since then, Indonesia has seized some 10,000 illegal fishing vessels from China, Taiwan, Thailand, and the Philippines. 

And now that the poachers are hunted and punished, fishermen like Meon can command a better price for their catch – another reason why consumers are seeing the prices of yellow-tail go up.

“The price has gone up by fivefold. Back then, it was around 10,000 rupiah (S$1) but now it’s 50,000 rupiah per kilogram,” said Meon. 

The demand for the fish, in part to make fishballs, has kept prices high, but it turns out there is another factor at play. 

SEAFOOD HUB NO MORE

Chua Bao Chong from Kah Huat Song Kee Fish Agent, one of the main seafood suppliers in Singapore, said that Singapore used to be the hub for seafood.

This means all seafood exports to the region and beyond had to pass through Singapore’s ports to reach their eventual markets, which resulted in discounted prices for consumers here.

But as other regional ports catch up, seafood exporters are now by-passing Singapore and shipping to their customers directly. This means Singapore no longer holds the bargaining power of a distributor. 

“Countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, they used to transport to Singapore but now they can go directly to any other country, ”he explained. “Now … the seafood range (in Singapore) has become smaller.”  

As Singapore’s market is too small to dictate prices, consumers here are finally paying the true price of what it takes to attract regional fishermen to ship their seafood here. 

Watch this episode of For Food’s Sake! here:

LEXINGTON, Kentucky: Mikhy Farrera Brochez, the man convicted of leaking the personal details of thousands of people on Singapore’s HIV registry, was on Friday (Sep 27) sentenced to two years’ jail.

Brochez was found guilty in a US court in June 2019 of several charges, including transmitting threats for extortion and illegally transferring the identification of another person. 

He will be placed on supervised release for three years after he finishes his time in prison.

Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Jan 28 that Brochez had leaked the names and addresses of 5,400 HIV-positive Singaporeans and 8,800 foreigners.

READ: Mikhy Brochez found guilty of trying to extort Singapore government in HIV registry leak trial

Brochez lived in Singapore for 10 years from 2008 and worked as a polytechnic lecturer. He admitted to using degrees that he fabricated during his time here. 

The American citizen was jailed in Singapore in 2016 for lying about his HIV-positive status to gaining an employment pass. After he was released, he returned to the US before MOH’s announcement in January.

During the trial in the US in June 2019, FBI agents and others said Brochez smuggled the database out of Singapore partly by sending it to his mother. He also kept it on seven devices including phones, a laptop and external hard drives, and uploaded it online to a Google drive.

From the US, Brochez emailed links to media and government officials, witnesses said.

He threatened to disclose the information more widely if Singapore opened an investigation into his case, did not close the registry and did not release his partner, Singaporean doctor Ler Teck Siang.

Brochez has also been ordered by a US court to “immediately surrender” to Singapore’s authorities the data obtained from the HIV registry and all other confidential information.

He was also told to “permanently delete” all information obtained from MOH and the Singapore Prisons Service from all devices, storage media or websites.

SINGAPORE: The body of a 61-year-old man was found at a canal along Marine Parade Road on Friday (Sep 27) evening.

The police said they were alerted around 6pm to a case of unnatural death.

 The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was also notified and the body was retrieved by SCDF officers. The man was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

A CNA reader said she first noticed the commotion at around 7.30pm. She saw a body floating in the canal, and divers attempting to retrieve it. A net was seen draped from the railings above the canal.

Police officers were also seen at the scene and at a construction site across the road.

The police said they are investigating the death.