Blame it on the pandemic affecting supply chains or blame it on technical issues, but either way, you won’t be getting your hands on a new PlayStation 5 (PS5) anytime soon if your pre-orders weren’t processed this morning.
As soon as the clock struck 11am today (Sept 18), several websites — including the official Sony Singapore store — crashed from the flood of traffic driven by folks wanting to secure their entry into next-gen gaming when the PS5 drops on Nov 19.
The hype kicked off yesterday morning after an official announcement made by Sony on the availability and pricing of their upcoming console. Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) Singapore then followed up with a confirmation that the PS5 will be available for online and offline pre-order today.
To the chagrin of local gamers, visiting sites like Sony Singapore and Qisahn brought up broken pages when pre-orders opened this morning. Both sites have since gone live again after getting temporarily downed.
It’s no secret that the Covid-19 pandemic has adversely affected many businesses in Singapore, be they food-related or retail. But it seems despite the downturn, at least one group of entrepreneurs have remained undeteterred — local celebrities.
These well-known personalities have launched their new F&B ventures both online and off in the last two months. According to former actress Cassandra See and Fly Entertainment boss Irene Ang at least, times of crises are when they see new opportunities arise.
Cut off from the outside world as Covid-19 swept through the dormitories, migrant workers desperate for a smoke or a drink turned to unorthodox means to get their fix.
At one dorm, cigarettes and liquor were tossed over the fence. And in at least two purpose-built dorms, smuggling networks involving garbage collectors, cleaners and drivers were able to take root.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, some workers told Tamil Murasu and The New Paper how alcohol and cigarettes were smuggled in and sold at marked-up prices, with some items costing four times more than the prices outside.
At Sungei Tengah Lodge, they implicated those who have access in and out of the dorm. A resident, who wanted to be known only as Deva, 30, said alcohol has not been allowed in the dorm since April.
But booze, legal and illegal cigarettes, and illegal chewing tobacco were smuggled in.
He said garbage collectors brought in contraband in their trucks and passed them to cleaners who in turn gave them to a group of selected workers. Residents go to these selected workers to collect their orders.
Certis is conducting investigations after a video clip showed its officers disposing of confiscated alcohol at a migrant worker dormitory.
“We are aware that our auxiliary police officers deployed at Tuas View Dormitory were assisting to carry out the disposal of confiscated alcohol,” Certis told AsiaOne.
A video clip circulating on social media yesterday (Sept 17) had a caption saying that a worker was caught after attempting to smuggle alcohol into the dormitory.
Several auxiliary police officers were seen pouring liquor and beer into a drain, with dozens more of the confiscated alcohol placed on the area beside them.
Another man then placed the empty bottles and cans into a trash bag.
The clip garnered close to 340,000 views, as well as over 1,000 comments, with many raising questions whether it was appropriate to dispose of the alcohol in this manner, and why migrant workers were not allowed to consume alcohol after work.
The reveal of the world’s first gaming massage chair definitely caused some buzz among the gaming community when it was first announced in June 2020.
And now, it seems even non-gamers may be interested in the Predator Gaming Chair x Osim as singer-songwriter and avid gamer JJ Lin may just be the ambassador of said chair.
We gathered that this new collaboration may be a hint at the international superstar’s passion for gaming. Moreover, it will be fitting since he has been the ambassador for Osim Chairs since 2019.
The new campaign may even be linked to the uThrone which was rolled out earlier this year.
SINGAPORE – Using multiple accounts with fictitious names on food delivery applications, a 27-year-old man ordered food using his neighbours’ addresses and instructed delivery riders to leave the meals there.
He also promised the riders that he would pay them after the delivery but never did so.
Leonard Tan Tong Han was sentenced to seven days’ jail on Thursday (Sept 17) after pleading guilty to four charges of cheating. Each charge was for a separate incident involving a different delivery rider.
Nine other similar charges, involving other delivery riders, were considered during sentencing by Principal District Judge Toh Han Li.
Court documents state that Tan ordered more than $700 worth of food using multiple accounts on the mobile apps of food delivery operators GrabFood and Foodpanda. He had used fictitious names and random phone numbers to set up the accounts.
Between Feb 25 and March 14, he ordered food to be delivered to either of two neighbours’ flats. He also opted to pay for the orders in cash upon delivery of the food.
SINGAPORE: Some tourism companies here are cautiously optimistic about the benefits of the SingapoRediscover vouchers, with hopes that they will give a further boost to business after the recent resumption of tours and hotel stays.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) announced on Wednesday (Sep 16) that every Singaporean aged 18 and above in 2020 will receive S$100 worth of SingapoRediscovers vouchers, which can be used on staycations, attraction tickets and tours.
They can be used between December this year and the end of June next year, and more details on the redemption mechanism will be announced in November.
Tour operators CNA spoke to said they are expecting more business from the vouchers, launched to support the local tourism industry, which has been battered by COVID-19.
Founder of Oriental Travel and Tours Stanley Foo told CNA he has already received several inquiries from interested customers keen to use their vouchers on their tours.
“I think moving forward, what we are planning to do is to come up with a series of tours that will attract locals, because we are mindful that most locals … are looking for unique experiences,” he added.
Currently, the company’s offerings include its Creepy Tales Of Singapore paranormal activity tour, as well as tours to Pulau Ubin.
“So we cannot have the traditional tours. We need to come up with something more unique, something that will attract them to spend their tourism vouchers,” said Mr Foo.
While he expects that the company will definitely see an increase in bookings after the vouchers are launched in December, he is not sure how big the spike will be.
Adding that he estimates an increase in bookings of about 30 per cent from the vouchers, Mr Foo said he thinks hotel stays will be the most popular use of the vouchers, over tours and tourist attractions.
“And staycations don’t come cheap. S$100 is not a lot of money, once you stay in a hotel it’s game over already, you still have to top up some money. And children are not given the vouchers, only adults. So a young couple with some young children below 18 … what can they do with S$200?” he added.
A young couple with no children is even more likely to spend the money on a staycation, he added. “And once they spend it on a staycation that means they will not spend it on tours anymore. I would think that maybe 20 to 30 per cent of the population might spend it on tours. A good 50 per cent maybe on staycations, and another 20 to 30 per cent on attractions.”
Founder of Let’s Go Tour Singapore Robin Loh shared Mr Foo’s prediction that tour companies may not be the primary beneficiaries of the vouchers. While the scheme is “very good news”, he is “a little bit unsure” whether it will give his business a very big boost.
“I think the very standard way Singaporeans may use the vouchers would be for a hotel stay, a staycation,” he told CNA, adding that the hotel sector would probably get “the lion’s share” of the vouchers.
Noting that hotels are seeing high demands for their rooms, Mr Loh said: “It’s players like us – tour agencies at large whether big or small – we are the ones that’s really suffering, and not really getting much traction.
“I really hope very much that these vouchers will help us, but I’m a little bit unsure because it’s really dependent on the spending pattern of locals, whether they would just go for a staycation – the easiest way to spend it.”
Speaking to CNA, Ngee Ann Polytechnic senior lecturer in tourism Michael Chiam said Singaporeans are likely to use the vouchers across the different sectors, as they have “diverse interests”.
“For example, families with young children and seniors may want to go for a staycation whereas the younger crowd may be more keen on joining a walking tour.”
However, more popular hotels or attractions are likely to see an increase first before others benefit from the spill-over demand, said Mr Chiam.
“It is important that all hotels or attractions curate packages that will attract and draw the local consumers so that they can benefit from the SingapoRediscovers campaign.”
Hotel manager of boutique hotel Lloyd’s Inn Mr Kelvin Soh said the hotel has tied up with online booking platform Klook to promote SingapoRediscovers.
STB and Klook recently launched a S$2 million marketing partnership to promote local tourism and lifestyle offerings under the SingapoRediscovers campaign.
The hotel also plans to allow the vouchers to be used and stacked for all package bookings, which offer food, spa treatments and a staycation within the room.
This “offers the guests great value for money” as these packages are priced at discounted rates with the hotel’s partners, said Mr Soh.
Hospitality businesses have been seeing more activity since the Government allowed the resumption of local staycations, he added, and the industry can expect “a slight boost” in business with the S$100 vouchers.
MORE STAFF TO DEAL WITH RISE IN BUSINESS?
To appeal to local clientele, tourism companies have had to make changes to their programme lineup. Some even expect to expand their team to accommodate more bookings.
With the expected increase in business, Mr Foo of Oriental Travel and Tours intends to grow his team of freelance tour guides and hire more full-time administrative staff.
“We think that once the tourism vouchers are out we will get quite busy and maybe with some paperwork and all the different bookings that will be going on, so we are looking to hire administrative staff,” he added.
During the “circuit breaker” period, Mr Loh and his team got together to prepare to resume operations with new programmes targeted at locals. When they were allowed to reopen their tours in July, the tour company launched a programme to tour a kelong, or traditional fishing platform, and the response has been “pretty good”, he added.
The team also launched an educational tour series targeted at parents with young children, touching on topics in the school syllabus.
“We are actually in a constant mode of content creation, trying to reach out to as many locals as possible. We also hope that in doing this, we have more to offer and possibly have a bigger chance of landing the vouchers users,” said Mr Loh.
Mr Robin Loh (left) of Let’s Go Tours takes guests on a kelong tour. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
The increase in visitorship is likely to lead to an increase in demand for manpower, said Mr Chiam. “Some companies may rehire staff, as these staff are familiar with the business operations and they require minimal training.”
Lloyd’s Inn has not carried out any retrenchments or revised staff wages this year, said Mr Soh, and the hotel is hiring for guest relations and marketing positions.
“We will monitor the uptick nearer to date, as hiring new manpower requires time to train. We are likely to first give our employees overtime instead to cope with the increasing workload,” he added.
While he used to see just one or two locals attending the tours each week before the pandemic struck, Mr Foo now sees 15 to 20 locals joining the tours every week.
“People are just trying to find ways to do something in Singapore. Everyone is bored, nobody can travel, so what are we going to do? So most probably either staycation or going on tours,” he added.
Ms Serene Pek, founder of Cuddlefish Divers, which offers diving tours around local waters, told CNA that she has seen an 80 per cent increase in business compared to before the pandemic hit, and business “really picked up” after Phase Two of Singapore’s reopening.
She attributes this to divers who cannot travel overseas amid the pandemic but want to continue their hobby. Cuddlefish Divers also offers the open water diver course, conducted in Singapore.
“I think the vouchers would really help draw Singaporeans that are currently all stuck in Singapore to maybe pick up something new,” said Ms Pek.
“We want to attract photographers, people who love underwater photography to come and join us at Pulau Hantu, there are a lot of critters for them to take photos of.”
A group of Cuddlefish Divers students with their instructor on a guided dive tour of Pulau Hantu. (Photo: Serene Pek)
The company received about 30 queries after the announcement of the vouchers, but has not accepted any bookings yet, she added. “Because the thing is obviously the vouchers are not released yet, and we definitely need more clarity from STB about these vouchers as well – like how is it going to work for us as an operator.”
In adapting to safe management measures, the company obtained approval to take 15 people out to diving spots on a boat. The group is further divided into smaller groups of five, and relegated to different areas of the boat after their temperatures are taken. Their details are also captured for contact tracing purposes.
Most business establishments would probably roll out special deals to take advantage of the S$100 vouchers, especially to attract families with children during the end-of-year school holidays, said Mr Chiam.
These deals could come in the form of discounts or product bundling with other businesses, he added.
Mr Colin Startup, co-founder of cycling tour company The Cycle Startup, said he plans to introduce a new deal for the tours from December in time for the launch of the SingapoRediscovers vouchers.
To comply with safe management measures, Mr Startup, who runs the company with his wife, had to cut their full-day tours down to half-day ones. Business is still “fairly low” compared to before the pandemic, he added, describing it as having had “a massive impact”.
“We’ve changed the focus from the overseas visitors to the local population,” he said, adding that the longest tour they run now lasts just five hours. Before the pandemic hit, they used to run eight-hour tours focusing on Singapore’s gardens.
Adding that he expects to see a spike in bookings from December, he said: “I think November’s going to be a bit quiet because people will be waiting for the vouchers and so if they’re interested in doing any tour, (the) chances are they’ll wait.
“Overall the scheme is very, very positive, so I am expecting a big pick up when we get into the scheme in December.”
Adding that he hopes people who have never considered taking local tours will start thinking about how they are going to spend their S$100, Mr Startup said: “And we’re hoping that we’ll be one of the ones that they consider when it comes to spending that money.”
SINGAPORE: Singapore’s attention was gripped in recent weeks by the acquittal of Parti Liyani, a foreign domestic worker, or FDW for short, who had been accused by her former employer of theft.
While many were intrigued by the sequence of events leading to Ms Liyani’s acquittal, the incident has thrust to the forefront a known but less discussed issue regarding migrant domestic work – the deployment of FDWs and the type of chores they do.
Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) like the Centre for Domestic Employees (CDE) deal regularly with complaints of illegal deployment from FDWs where they claimed to have been deployed to work at multiple households, made to perform non-domestic chores, or even provide cleaning services at commercial properties.
Such complaints rank alongside non-payment and short payment of salary as one of the top work-related issues that CDE assists FDWs with.
In 2019 alone, 190 complaints of this nature were made to CDE, and they make up 11.5 per cent of all cases handled by us that year.
This year, in one of the most egregious illegal deployment complaints we have handled thus far, the complainant had to perform the full extent of domestic work at four different households, and on top of that, doubled up as a cleaner in an office.
Her employer unilaterally terminated her contract and attempted to repatriate her when they found out that a report was made to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
CDE intercepted the repatriation and eventually found her a new employer with the aid of our network of employment agents.
While most complaints regarding illegal deployment are less abhorrent, they still warrant our attention as they infringe on the fundamental rights of FDWs working in Singapore.
File photo of a domestic worker (Photo: AFP/Noel Celis)
Yet, with that said, certain instances of suspected illegal deployment may take on various shades.
THE LAW IS CLEAR BUT REALITY CAN BE MESSY
In our experience, it may not always be fair to penalise the employers as some complaints could have risen out of misunderstanding between employers and FDWs, especially when FDWs are deployed to care for charges at the homes of close family members in the daytime while employers are at work.
Under current regulations, FDWs can be deployed with their charges, either children or elderly persons, to the homes of close family members of their employers in the daytime.
This is so that FDWs can continue to provide care to their charges under the supervision of the employers’ family members while their employers are at work.
This is permitted by MOM so long as FDWs accept the arrangements, are not required to perform household chores in the homes of the family members and receive adequate food and rest. The employer must declare such caregiving arrangements to MOM.
From an empirical standpoint, however, it may not always be easy to differentiate neatly between what is considered household chores in the homes of the family members FDWs should not undertake, from incidental chores that might arise out of caregiving duties.
Certain household chores such as the cleaning of windows in the homes of close family members or doing the laundry for family members living in another household are clear infringements of the law because they do not form part of caregiving duties for charges. Other household duties, however, are less clear.
For instance, employers could state that their children or elderly require a clean environment and request for FDWs to mop the floor of the homes of their family members.
In preparing meals for their charges, FDWs could inevitably end up assisting in the preparation of meals for other family members.
The performance of such duties could be incidental and “by-products” of caregiving duties for charges.
Should we lump such incidental chores together with outright infringements like window cleaning and laundry in the same bucket, and penalise employers when their FDWs perform these incidental duties? Or should we outrightly outlaw these incidental chores and prohibit FDWs from performing them?
STRICT POLICING MAY NOT BE POSSIBLE OR DESIRABLE
It would be impossible for regulators to police every such incident. It would also likely be impractical to outlaw these incidental chores because more Singaporeans rely on FDWs to be primary caregivers for their dependents while they are at work.
CDE believes a more practical approach is for employers to work out a mutual agreement with FDWs on the type of incidental work to be performed in the homes of close family members, barring work not related to caregiving for charges.
To avoid ambiguity, employers could state these upfront in the employment contract.
A man pushes an elderly man on a wheelchair, both wearing masks, at Orchard Road, Singapore on Feb 3. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
The responsibility lies with the employer to communicate these incidental duties clearly and early to both FDW and close family members and ensure that family members do not deploy the FDW to perform additional household duties not part of caregiving.
Clear communications on the parameters of duties will benefit all parties by reducing misunderstanding and pre-empting accusations that could lead to the eventual breakdown of employment relationships.
BUT ZERO TOLERANCE ON ILLEGAL DEPLOYMENT MUST BE MAINTAINED
CDE adopts a zero-tolerance approach towards illegal deployment. FDWs should never be deployed to perform domestic work in multiple households, regardless of whether FDWs agree to such arrangements or receive monetary inducement to do so.
The authorities need to take a strong stance against employers who deploy FDWs to perform non-domestic work such as cleaning their offices, helping out in their shops, or even assisting in home-based businesses.
An especially strong deterrent position must be taken against companies that knowingly employ FDWs as part-timers on their off days or against FDWs who moonlight.
Such positions are necessary to ensure that FDWs are protected against exploitative employment malpractices that may lead to burnout and subsequent health issues related to stress and overwork.
CDE would like to encourage FDWs and employers who are unsure about the employment rules of FDWs to reach out to us at our 24-hour helpline 1800 2255-233, so that we can advise accordingly.
Shamsul Kamar is Executive Director at the Centre for Domestic Employees.
SINGAPORE: Three food and beverage outlets have been ordered to temporarily close for breaching COVID-19 safety measures, said the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) on Thursday (Sep 17).
Fifteen other outlets have also been fined from S$1,000 onwards for flouting the rules, added the ministry in a media release.
These were among the 23 F&B outlets identified recently during stepped-up checks in the weekend of Sep 12 and Sep 13.
Among the outlets ordered to close is a seafood restaurant at Orchard Plaza that served alcohol from metal teapots.
At 11pm on Sep 12, officers arrived at Jiang Hu Xia Ke and observed 13 people pouring drinks from metal teapots at their tables.
“Investigations revealed that the teapots contained beer, and the restaurant supervisor admitted to concealing alcohol consumption using the teapots,” said the ministry in the media release.
Bottles of beer sold by the restaurants were also hidden at the bottom of a fridge used to store drinks.
Under the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020, sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages is prohibited after 10.30pm daily.
CUSTOMERS SEATED TOGETHER, INTERMINGLING
In Jurong East, eight people were observed sitting together and intermingling at a long table at 96 Food Fusion & Bar.
A group of eight seen sitting together at a long table at 96 Food Fusion & Bar on Sep 12, 2020. (Photo: Singapore Food Agency)
Another restaurant at Chinatown was ordered to close after accepting a booking for a group of 10 people.
When officers arrived at Frog Meat Fish Head at around 10pm, the customers were seen seated at two tables within a private dining room, said MSE.
“When asked, outlet staff claimed that the people at the two tables did not know one another,” said the ministry.
However, upon further questioning, the customers admitted they were colleagues.
The operators of all three outlets were issued an order to close for a period of 10 days.
15 F&B OUTLETS FINED FOR BREACHING SAFETY RULES
A total of 15 F&B outlets have also been fined for breaching COVID-19 safety measures, said MSE in the media release.
Customers at an F&B outlet in Punggol were seen consuming alcohol at 10.45pm. (Photo: Singapore Food Agency)
Ten of the outlets were fined S$1,000 for breaches such as allowing groups of more than five to be seated together or to intermingle between tables, and seating groups of customers less than 1m apart.
The other five outlets were fined S$2,000 for repeat offences, said MSE.
A group of 12 were seated across two tables at a Tanjong Pagar restaurant. (Photo: Urban Redevelopment Authority)
Additional inspections were carried out on Wednesday on 57 F&B outlets in “known hotspots”, said MSE.
Among these, seven were found to have breached COVID-19 safety rules.
“Agencies are reviewing these breaches and the appropriate enforcement actions to be taken, including temporary closure of the outlets and the issuance of fines,” said MSE.
“COVID-19 remains a grave threat,” said the ministry.
It added that dining out is an activity that “involves considerable risks because it entails gathering in enclosed spaces, without masks on, and for a prolonged duration”.
Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu on Thursday said that it was “regrettable” that F&B outlets have been found flouting COVID-19 safety rules.
“The errant actions of a few can jeopardise our collective efforts to keep our communities safe from COVID-19,” said Ms Fu in a Facebook post.
“That is why we have been stepping up our enforcement checks on F&B outlets.”
Ms Fu said the outlets that breached the safety rules were “placing Singaporeans at risk”.
“A resurgence of COVID-19 infections would set us back in the progress that we have made in transiting towards a new normal.”
She reminded the public to be mindful in observing safe distancing measures and to be responsible when dining out.
With the forecast of cool, rainy days coming to an end soon, a cold cup of icy sugary slush would be a much-needed treat to endure the familiar Singapore heat.
Alas, while 7-Eleven outlets can be found nearly everywhere, not all of them have machines that dispense Slurpee.
Contrary to popular belief, the brain freeze-inducing drink is not available in every store, Redditor u/MeePokUncle found out. The same individual behind other Telegram programs like @rainkorkorbot (which displays where it’s raining in Singapore) then decided to make Slurpee-hunting a lot easier, with yet another single-purpose Telegram bot dedicated to finding the nearest slushy-slinging 7-Eleven outlets to you.
“I made a Telegram Bot to let you find the nearest 7-Eleven outlets with Slurpee machines in Singapore,” the Redditor posted. “Now all that’s left is to pray that it isn’t broken/cleaning.”
