He may fancy himself as Singapore’s Rosa Parks, but one man’s civil disobedience on board an SBS Transit bus has been drawing brickbats instead of praise.
Going live on Facebook on Wednesday (Aug 19), the man — who was wearing a makeshift mask out of a neck warmer — challenged a bus captain and went on an expletive-laden tirade after being denied entry to the bus.
The police are currently investigating the incident, SBS Transit’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications Tammy Tan said in a statement today (Aug 20).
The man’s 15-minute long video started off with him complaining that the bus captain would not let him come on board.
He then turned the camera on himself, showing that he had a piece of cloth resembling a neck warmer pulled up over his nose.
Meanwhile, the bus captain, who had called SBS Transit’s Operations Control Centre for assistance said in Mandarin: “It’s not a mask. He is wearing a face towel. Is that allowed?”
Local actor and comedian Jeremy Chan is no mindreader, but he might as well be, considering his ability to read his wife Jesseca Liu’s emotions like an open book.
Is there a particular technique to it? Turns out, it’s not rocket science.
“You just need to understand the other party, then you’ll be able to read her every word and action,” Jeremy shared with 8world in a recent interview where he was promoting his upcoming Channel 8 drama SuperDad. “Besides, I’ve always been more of the attentive type, so I tend to think ahead.”
From preparing her meals to even how he speaks, Jeremy has got it all down to a T.
On days when Jesseca, 41, gets off work in the afternoon, the 39-year-old takes time to prepare lunch for her, meticulously cooking noodles and soup separately so that she can choose what she wants to have for her meal.
And when she reaches home, all it takes is a look at her expression and actions for Jeremy to understand how she’s feeling that day.
He added: “If she’s unhappy, I can definitely tell!”
Does anyone else feel like they’re mentally still stuck in March despite it being August?
As we’re adjusting to the ‘new normal’, we’ve seen a decrease in community cases, a reopening of tourist attractions (with discounts!) and hotels offering staycation promotions.
Crowds are also happily flocking to shopping malls as though the gates of hell have opened. Oh wait, that’s the Hungry Ghost Festival that has started, if you haven’t noticed.
But even though people are out and about, many businesses are suffering and retrenchments continue while the number of job vacancies shrink.
Amid the ongoing saga revolving around the sexual harassment claims against Darryl Ian Koshy — better known as Dee Kosh — one of his closest collaborators has publicly weighed in on the matter.
Ben Tang, a 26-year-old influencer managed by Dee Kosh, has made regular appearances on the latter’s YouTube videos for nearly six years. Now with over 124,000 followers on his Instagram page, Tang has his 32-year-old manager and mentor to thank for his current status as a known social media personality.
SINGAPORE – More than 4,600 jobs and 860 traineeships in some 1,600 start-ups are available to local job seekers as part of the SGUnited Jobs and Skills programmes.
The top five jobs offered are software developers, chefs, engineering professionals, managers in sales, marketing and business development roles, and administrative and related associate professionals, said the Ministry of Manpower on Thursday (Aug 20) it is weekly jobs situation report.
These five top job roles pay a median monthly salary of between $2,700 and $6,000.
Other jobs on offer range from tech-related roles such as app developers to non-tech ones like sous chefs, business development and digital content producers.
Between April and June this year, about 330 job seekers have joined the start-ups with support from the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package. About half were mid-career workers who took part in the Professional Conversion Programme (PCP).
Meanwhile, about 150 fresh and recent graduates have entered the start-up scene through the SGUnited Traineeships Programme.
SINGAPORE: Unhappy at his son-in-law for cheating on his daughter and forcing him out of the company, a man took a knife to meet the younger man and stabbed him in broad daylight at a coffee shop, later telling passers-by not to help him but let him die.
Tan Nam Seng, now 72, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Aug 20) to one count of culpable homicide not amounting to murder by stabbing 38-year-old Spencer Tuppani at 121 Telok Ayer Street in July 2017.
Tan was suffering from major depressive disorder at the time, ruminating overwhelmingly about the well-being of his daughter and having his mental responsibility for the killing significantly impaired, the prosecution said.
The court heard that Tan was semi-retired at the time of the offence. He had founded a port management services company TNS Shipping in 1974 and expanded it over the years in a family-run business that saw his three daughters working for him.
After Mr Tuppani married Tan’s eldest daughter in 2005, he began working for Tan as well in one of the companies.
The company did not perform well for four years from 2012, and when business improved in 2016, Mr Tuppani suggested selling it to a bigger corporation. Tan left the sale to his son-in-law as he was contemplating retirement.
Leading up to the sale, Mr Tuppani persuaded some of the shareholders including his wife and the accused to assign their shares to him to boost his stake in the company, so the buyer of the company would not have control of it.
They agreed and the sale went through, with Mr Tuppani appointed CEO of the firm in December 2016. However, Tan was unhappy as he received only about S$450,000 from the sale of his shares.
VICTIM HAD AFFAIR WITH ANOTHER WOMAN, HAD TWO KIDS WITH HER
In early 2017, his daughter found out that Mr Tuppani had been having an affair with another woman and had two children from the affair. Mr Tuppani had three other kids with Tan’s daughter.
They agreed to get a divorce, but still lived together in the same household as Tan, frequently quarrelling over issues linked to the split.
Subsequent events led Tan to believe that Mr Tuppani was planning to cheat him of his business, by divorcing his daughter after taking control of all the shares.
He began feeling miserable, ruminating excessively about his son-in-law’s actions and was unable to sleep at night, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Lim Jian Yi.
At around lunchtime on Jul 10, 2017, Tan went to the company’s office at Cecil Court, and saw Mr Tuppani having a meal at a coffee shop at 121 Telok Ayer Street as he was driving past.
Angry that his son-in-law had been ignoring and avoiding his attempts to discuss business matters, which he considered disrespectful, Tan decided to confront the younger man.
He was shown in closed-circuit television footage, played in court on Thursday, entering the office and rummaging around in the pantry before retrieving a knife which he kept in his sling bag.
THE STABBING
He went to the coffee shop, where his son-in-law was having lunch with three friends. After Mr Tuppani greeted him, Tan confronted the younger man and said in Hokkien: “You are too much.”
Tan swiftly took out the 22cm-long knife from his bag and stabbed Mr Tuppani three times in quick succession, as seen in clips played in court. His daughter was in the public gallery, dressed in black.
Mr Tuppani ran towards Boon Tat Street while pursued by his father-in-law. He was shown stumbling and getting up along a shop before collapsing.
File photo of the scene at A Poke Theory. (Photo: Koh Mui Fong/TODAY)
Tan appeared soon after and stood over him. He stopped employees of the restaurant where his son-in-law had collapsed in front of, from helping the victim.
He pushed them away, saying: “This is my son-in-law, don’t help him, let him die.”
The passers-by were shown walking away, and when other passers-by tried to help, Tan told them to “stay away”, saying: “He has come here to die” and “I wish to kill him”.
Tan was shown kicking his son-in-law’s face twice as Mr Tuppani lay on the floor, before waiting for the police to arrive.
While waiting, he called his daughter and told her he had stabbed the younger man thrice.
He said: “I can’t sleep at night. I have done it. I have killed him. Don’t cry. I am old already. I am not scared (of) going to jail.”
His daughter cried over the phone and told her father not to do anything, but Tan replied: “What’s done cannot be undone.”
ACCUSED WAS SUFFERING FROM MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER
The police arrived shortly after the stabbing and found Tan sitting calmly on a chair outside the restaurant with a blood-stained knife on a tray nearby and the victim lying motionless on the floor.
Tan told the police where the knife was and pointed to the victim, and said he had used the weapon on his son-in-law.
The victim was taken to hospital and pronounced dead soon after. Tan told the police in the car that he was unhappy with how the victim had mistreated his daughter, and added that he had tried approaching the victim a few times to sort things out, but things had not changed.
An autopsy found three stab wounds on the victim’s shoulder and chest, with the cause of death certified as a perforating stab wound.
Tan was examined at the Institute of Mental Health and found to be suffering from major depressive disorder. At the time of the offence, he was experiencing a major depressive episode.
“The accused’s pervasive dysphoric state, diminished ability to concentrate, negative cognition of helplessness, as well as overwhelming ruminations and worries about the well-being of his daughters would have adversely affected his impulse control and judgment at the time of the alleged offence, and significantly impaired his mental responsibility for the alleged murder,” said the IMH report.
Tan, who had lost a lot of weight since his charge for the original offence of murder three years ago, is represented by lawyer Wee Pan Lee.
The prosecution asked for an adjournment to prepare more submissions for sentencing, and was granted one.
Both sides will return at a later date for sentencing.
For culpable homicide not amounting to murder, Tan could be jailed for life. He cannot be caned as he is above 50.
A snazzy development along Beach Road will soon breathe new life into the Bugis precinct, known for its artsy, boho vibe.
Guoco Midtown, located right next to Shaw Tower with an extension into Tan Quee Lan Street, is set to be a lifestyle hub with facilities and amenities that’s aimed at the young and chic.
Similar to Tanjong Pagar’s Guoco Tower, where Dyson’s founder recently bought Singapore’s priciest penthouse for $73.8 million, Guoco Midtown is developer GuocoLand’s latest mixed-use development in the CBD (Central Business District).
SINGAPORE: United Overseas Bank (UOB) will resume full operations in all branches on Thursday (Aug 20), as the bank reopens its remaining branches.
The seven branches are: Bishan, Changi Airport, Coleman, Hougang, Marina Bay Financial Centre, Upper Bukit Timah and Hangout @ UOB.
“This concludes the final phase of UOB’s considered and careful safe reopening branch plan,” the bank said in a press release.
Banks were closed during Singapore’s “circuit-breaker” period in April to curb the spread of COVID-19, and progressively resumed services as measures were eased starting in June.
“Over the past two months since we began to gradually reopen our branches, traffic has steadily increased as customers come to speak with us for support on banking activities such as financial advisory and business needs,” said Mr Benny Chan, UOB’s head of channels, Group Channels and Digitalisation.
“In resuming full operation, our customers can visit their preferred branch.”
He also encouraged customers to use digital channels when possible, make appointments online and to tap on the SMS queue service to minimise the time spent outside their homes.
UOB will maintain its precautionary measures at all branches for the health and safety of employees and customers, it said.
Customers visiting the bank will be required to wear a mask, complete SafeEntry check-in and check-out, undergo temperature screening and make health and travel declarations before entering a branch.
“In addition to increasing the frequency of cleaning at all branches, automated teller machines (ATMs) and auto lobbies, the Bank has also applied a commercial grade self-disinfecting coating at high-touch areas including branch counters and meeting areas within its branches and at its ATMs,” UOB said.
All reopened branches will continue to prioritise the elderly and vulnerable customers during the first hour of banking operations, it added.
A pair of wealthy Singapore entrepreneurs has sparked excitement among football fans with a bid for English Premier League club Newcastle United that, if successful, will see them join the growing ranks of Asian business magnates to have a stake in the beautiful game.
Nelson Loh and Terence Loh, who are cousins, together with Evangeline Shen, a China-educated former banker and lawyer, are co-founders of the Bellagraph Nova Group, which on Saturday said it was in an “advanced stage of negotiation” for the takeover of the club, popularly known as The Magpies for their black and white home strip.
“In addition to the engagement to the Newcastle Football Club and community, Bellagraph Nova Group enlisted [the] help of [former] England captain Alan Shearer and former player Michael Chopra,” it said, adding that it had provided a letter of intent and proof of funds.
“We wish to close the deal as soon as possible and do some big things for the club and for the community. We already have the support of many fans.”
In late March, Ms Margaret Lim (not her real name) was praying as usual in the bedroom when her 58-year-old husband left the flat and later took his own life.
It was a day before his birthday, and she was going to discuss his birthday plans with him.
The family breadwinner had quit his job in the transport sector less than two weeks earlier.
Ms Lim, who is in her 50s, said the shift work had affected his health.
He had to adjust to his new boss’ working style since late last year and wanted to transfer to a lower-ranked post for less pay, but it was not possible.
And then the pandemic came.
“He didn’t share or talk much, but I could see that he was quite affected by Covid-19 because every day, there was always bad news on TV,” said Ms Lim.
She said he might have felt hopeless about the future after his resignation, given that the pandemic was likely to be prolonged and would affect his chances of finding work.
“He probably foresaw that people would be losing their jobs, and he wouldn’t be able to find a temporary job,” she said.
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