SINGAPORE – The High Court next Monday (June 29) will hear a constitutional challenge against holding a general election at this time.
The case, which will be heard on the day before Nomination Day, was filed by human rights lawyer M. Ravi on Tuesday (June 23), on behalf of Daniel De Costa.
Mr Ravi said he did so hours after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Tuesday announced in a nationwide TV broadcast that he was calling a general election.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday (June 23), Mr Ravi said he is seeking a court order to stop the Returning Officer from holding an election now.
The Returning Officer is a public officer appointed by the Prime Minister to oversee the election.
Mr Ravi wrote: “The application is premised on the ground that the calling of the election is in breach of the right to free and fair elections under the current circumstances.”
The Elections Department has put in place a raft of measures, including safe-distancing and modified campaign rules to ensure voters, candidates and officials are safe during the election period.
SINGAPORE: A six-year-old British boy who came to Singapore for experimental treatment for an aggressive cancer is on his way home to the UK after staying cancer-free for about six months.
Oscar Saxelby-Lee, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in December 2018, flew to Singapore with his parents in November last year after doctors in the United Kingdom said there was only palliative care left – they had exhausted all treatment options. He had just months to live.
But when doctors from Singapore reached out to the family with a new experimental treatment – that only one other child in the world has had – the family raised £500,000 (S$863,000) in weeks and made the trip.
Six months after the treatment, Oscar is in remission from cancer and his family flew home late Thursday night (Jun 25), after saying fond goodbyes to the team at the National University Hospital (NUH) who saved his life.
It has been a tough battle for six-year-old Oscar. (Photo: Family)
Speaking to CNA shortly before the family left Singapore, Oscar’s mother Olivia said they were feeling “thankful” and “overwhelmed” by the situation. They are expected to touch down in the UK at 1pm Singapore time on Friday.
“The team in Singapore are just incredible. Oscar is buzzing and over the moon. He’s had a really rough time and it’s been a long time since he has been home,” Olivia said.
“It’s so surreal, so overwhelming that we’re in this position. It’s such a whirlwind … there are no words to describe it.
“It’s a mentally, physically, emotionally, psychologically draining journey, but we couldn’t be more thankful that Oscar is here with us.”
Oscar underwent compassionate treatment – which means it is not even in the medical trial stage yet.
“We had to take the risk, and it paid off. It’s a miracle. The team at NUH are just phenomenal, and they are so special to us now.”
Less than a year ago, Oscar was facing very different odds.
Three days after celebrating Christmas in 2018, Oscar’s parents Olivia and Jamie received the worst news possible – their only son had cancer and it was spreading quickly. Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia starts in the bone marrow and invades the blood rapidly.
Oscar Saxelby-Lee is in Singapore for treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. (Photo: Family)
Within hours, doctor started chemotherapy, but about a month later, it was clear the treatment was not working. He underwent more intensive chemotherapy, forcing him into isolation.
By March 2019, it was clear Oscar was a non-responder. His parents were told he would need a bone-marrow transplant, with his appeal for a donor going viral in the UK.
A month later – and after four rounds of chemotherapy that left Oscar weak and tired – doctors said traditional treatments were not going to work. The cancer was still there.
At the end of May, he underwent a stem cell transplant after more radiotherapy work. He had only been home for a few hours on some weekends, and was kept in isolation for monitoring.
They thought the transplant would be the cure.
But in August last year, a small percentage of cancer cells was found – 0.01 per cent. A week later, it multiplied three times. Doctors were stumped, and told his parents there were no options left in the UK.
Oscar has been discharged from hospital. (Photo: Family)
His parents reached out to doctors across the world, and heard about Professor Dario Campana’s work at the National University of Singapore (NUS) on childhood cancer.
They approached him and Associate Professor Allen Yeoh, head of paediatric oncology at NUH, offered to help. It was Oscar’s last hope.
In weeks, the family raised £500,000 (S$863,000) and flew over in mid-November. By then, his cancer count was about 1 per cent – it had multiplied by 100 times in just two months.
“It wasn’t a very easy decision at all. It was probably, you know, it was and it will always be the hardest decision of our lives,” Olivia said.
“The (NUH team) welcomed us with open arms and have done everything in their power to save Oscar’s life.”
By the time he arrived in Singapore, Oscar had spent 10 months in isolation in hospital. He had lost so much weight and struggled to walk – the little boy developed bruises on his legs from the strain of walking.
Oscar Saxelby-Lee in NUH for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia treatment. (Photo: Family)
The new form of treatment would see immune cells from a patient’s blood drawn and equipped with a Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR-T).
The receptor binds itself to a specific protein on the cancer cell and activates the CAR-T cells to kill the cancer cells.
This particular form of CAR-T treatment is different and more difficult because the leukaemia cells resemble Oscar’s immunity system, Assoc Prof Yeoh explained previously.
By the time they were ready to start treatment on Christmas Eve last year, Oscar’s cancer count was 7 per cent.
“There was every doubt it wasn’t going to work. This treatment wasn’t even at trial level – it’s compassionate,” Olivia explained.
“It was all new to us. We didn’t know anything about Singapore, and we had no idea what we were getting into, but when there’s a light in such a heartbreaking, traumatic time, you reach for it.
“We just packed up and went for it. It was far away from everything we knew.”
Being away from their family during their time in Singapore has been difficult. There was no guarantee the treatment would work.
“We had to have conversations with the team about what plans we would have to make to get Oscar home if he didn’t pull through, and they were really, really hard parts,” Olivia recalled.
“I’m grateful he’s here with us.”
Oscar Saxelby-Lee is in remission from cancer and flying home. (Photo: Family)
By mid-January there was good news – there were no cancer cells in Oscar’s blood. There was a cautious celebration – Oscar had been to this stage before, but yet the cancer came back.
It didn’t, and in April, Oscar was discharged from hospital. While the world struggled to contain the COVID-19 outbreak, Oscar was fighting his own battles.
Four rounds of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, isolation, two stem cell transplants and an experimental treatment left the six-year-old boy weak and exhausted.
There were serious side effects, besides the bouts of vomiting and diarrhoea. With his immune system severely hit, ulcers and sores started appearing in his mouth.
He developed osteopenia – a condition where bone mass is lost and bones become brittle. Struggling to walk, Oscar started moving around the house with a walker, exercising his legs and taking small steps with some help from his parents.
He also acquired brain damage.
“There were a lot of questions when Oscar acquired this (brain) damage – if he would ever get to speak again because he lost all his speech. He couldn’t communicate very well, couldn’t even lift his head up,” Olivia explained.
“He was pretty much comatose for some time.”
But the damage is reversible, doctors said, and he was prescribed medication to help. While the little boy still suffers from tremors, he is beginning to walk again without help.
“Every small step is helping him recover. He has gone through the mill – the amount of trauma he has been through for his age.
Oscar high-fiving a doctor in NUH. (Photo: Family)
“You look at where he is today, and every day he is getting stronger – it’s very small steps – but every step gets him stronger.”
Updates on the family’s Facebook page show Oscar fighting to build a stack of pancake toys, to eat, or struggling to take a few steps, but he never stopped laughing or smiling.
“He is always smiling. I’m not sure how he does it, but we try to encourage him every step of the way. He’s just inclined that way. Even now, he smiles even bigger now, after all he has been through. He’s our little miracle.”
A FOND GOODBYE, AND SEE YOU SOON
On Monday, Oscar went back into NUH to have his blood taken. It will be frozen as a backup for Oscar’s treatment.
He went around the hospital, waving goodbye to the nurses of ward 8B and the doctors who he has come to know so well.
“The team in Singapore has been great, and they’re just incredible. They have done everything for Oscar, and they’ve saved his life,” Olivia said.
He will fly back in about six months’ time for a check up to make sure he has remained in remission. Once in the UK, he will go for regular checkups at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, near his home in Worcester.
Oscar with the nurses on his ward. (Photo: Family)
Oscar might get the thumbs up to go home after being free of cancer for six months. (Photo: Family)
“We’ve come this far, and we’re about to go home and it’s incredible,” Olivia said, shortly before they flew off.
“When we decided to come here, obviously in the back of our minds, that there was always that wonder of coming home with him. It’s happening.
“We’re at that point where we know this is definitely the best decision we made, and we can’t thank Singapore, Singaporeans and the NUH team enough.
“They took a leap of faith in Oscar, in us as a family, and they’re always by our side. We have formed friendships and trust, and it’s hard knowing that we will be leaving that behind. The team is committed to helping him for the rest of his life, if they need to, and that’s incredible.
“Singapore’s our safety net, and we’re so emotional. It’s a really hard goodbye, and hopefully we’ll come back and he’ll have recovered fully.
“I hate to look too far down the road, because I want to live in the moment now – life has taught us that – and to appreciate what’s in front of you today.”
Oscar’s thank you note to healthcare workers. (Photo: Family)
The dream for the family is that Oscar will recover, and be healthy again.
“I never want to see him in an intensive care unit again. I never want to see him in a paediatric cancer ward, I never want to see him have another needle insertion,” Olivia said.
“I never want to see him looking at me in my eyes, with so much fear, admiration and (need for) security all in one – I don’t want to see him go through that again.
“I never want to have to sit with him and say, ‘you know, this is okay’, when it’s not okay. I never want to see him suffering again.
“I just never, ever want him to experience anything like this again.”
A woman has become a target for doxxing after an Instagram Story of hers surfaced online in which she called for the death of all Indians.
A screenshot of her Instagram Story started spreading across social media earlier today (June 25). What apparently transpired was that the woman had been sitting on an MRT train seat when another passenger sat right next to her.
To be clear, it’s not illegal to sit next to someone on the MRT after the amendments to the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020 which stated that individuals are required to keep a safe distance of one metre from each other, except when in a motor vehicle or on public transport.
The woman was presumably irate as she was sitting in a corner seat — the one that only has two seats. Uncomfortable that the other passenger ignored social distancing, she stood up and walked away. But not before taking a picture of the other passenger.
He’s already been called Singapore’s next prime minister by foreign media since his appointment as first assistant secretary general of the People’s Action Party (PAP) in November 2018.
The appointment makes the 58-year-old the highest-ranked member of the fourth-generation leadership in the PAP’s central executive committee.
This is also the position that the incumbent PAP secretary general, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, occupied before he took over the reins.
And with Lee previously indicating that he would like to retire before he turns 70, which is in 2021, all signs indicate that Heng, who is currently Deputy Prime Minister, is his likely successor.
Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has also publicly shared on Facebook that “Swee Keat is the best person to move up to become DPM and take over as PM during the next term of government”.
PAP’s newcomer Poh Li San is certainly a high flyer — both literally and figuratively.
Poh, the vice-president of Changi Airport Group, has had several unconventional jobs. But the coolest, by far, is her stint as a search and rescue helicopter pilot with the Republic of Singapore Air Force.
The 45-year-old, who was unveiled as a People’s Action Party candidate at a virtual press conference today (June 25), said that out of all the missions she had completed, the relief efforts in the aftermath of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami remained one of the most memorable.
As a search and rescue helicopter pilot, she made daily trips to villages in Indonesia’s Aceh province, delivering necessities such as food and medical supplies.
With its proximity to the earthquake and resulting tsunami, Aceh was one of the worst-hit regions.
Banda Aceh, the province’s capital, saw a death toll of over 168,000 and widespread devastation.
SINGAPORE: A total of 12 locations, including eight shopping malls, were added on Thursday (Jun 25) to the health ministry’s list of public places visited by COVID-19 cases during their infectious period.
They are: Kaki Bukit Recreation Centre, a Sheng Siong supermarket on Geylang Road, a shop on Dunlop Street, Heartland Mall, Queensway Shopping Centre, Seah Im Food Centre, VivoCity, Lucky Plaza, 313@somerset, Peninsula Shopping Centre, Kallang Wave Mall and Bugis Junction.
The Sheng Siong supermarket in Geylang was visited by infectious cases on four separate occasions.
Eight of the 12 new locations announced on Thursday were visited by COVID-19 cases during Phase 2 of Singapore’s reopening.
Retail shops were allowed to resume business on Jun 19 after being shuttered for more than two months because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
People who were at the newly-announced locations during the specified timings should monitor their health closely for 14 days from their date of visit, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
The updated list is as follows:
(Table: MOH)
These public places were visited by COVID-19 cases for more than 30 minutes while they were infectious, said MOH on May 26 when it first released the list.
The list does not include the cases’ residences, workplaces, healthcare facilities visited and public transport places.
It will be updated on a rolling 14-day basis, which covers one incubation period and as epidemiological investigations progress.
People who have been at these places during the specified timings should see a doctor promptly if they develop symptoms of acute respiratory infection (such as cough, sore throat and runny nose), as well as fever and loss of taste or smell, and inform the doctor of their exposure history.
“There is no need to avoid places where confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been. The National Environment Agency will engage the management of affected premises to provide guidance on cleaning and disinfection,” said MOH.
Singapore reported 113 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, of which five are within the community.
One of the community cases is a Singaporean, and four are work pass holders.
The Singaporean, a 50-year-old man, was tested when he sought medical treatment. His case is unlinked and epidemiological investigations are ongoing, said MOH.
After the Workers’ Party (WP) teased her return to politics in their general election campaign video earlier this week, Nicole Seah was officially introduced as one of the party’s candidates in a virtual press conference this afternoon (June 25).
The 33-year-old former golden girl of the National Solidarity Party (NSP) caused a stir when she ran in the 2011 General Election for Marine Parade GRC. The People’s Action Party (PAP) won the seats, and she later left NSP and went overseas for work.
Seah is currently an associate director at a multinational marketing company and is married with a two-year-old daughter. During the press conference, she said she has been volunteering with WP since 2015 and also explained why she has returned to politics.
“To be honest, I’m having a very stable career right now. My personal life is in a very good state, and I do recognise that coming back out would also mean increased scrutiny. But I do it for the party because I believe in the leadership and I believe in the vision,” Seah said.
Yes, it has been a taboo subject with the political establishment for the longest time. But these are exceptional times and they deserve exceptional compromises.
The ruling government detests live political debates on TV and the reasons include some of these arguments: We don’t want our election campaigns to become political theatre. Our politics is a serious matter with no fanfare. The Singapore system has succeeded because our politicians are technocrats who spend time talking about and discussing issues minus the pulpit.
But the ban on GE 2020 rallies, the one event that can equalise the opportunities somewhat during the nine-day campaign period, will put the Opposition at a further disadvantage. Of course, live-streaming is allowed and the parties are given an extra exposure of three minutes each on national TV and radio.
The one unofficial reason for not having TV debates has never been articulated and it has to do with the apprehension that the leadership that came after Lee Kuan Yew might just not be able to cut it if they go into a no-holds-barred boxing ring with their opponents.
Been a supporter of one political party for your whole life? How about three? These politicians seem to believe in not stopping till they find the right shoe that fits. But how does it look on a CV?
With so many changes afoot this General Election, it’s easy to get confused as to who’s representing which party.
Here are the most prolific party-hoppers that will appear in GE2020 and the current parties that they belong to.
Benjamin Pwee (SDP)
Formerly PAP, SPP, DPP PHOTO: The Straits Times fileBenjamin Pwee, 52, was the assistant secretary-general of the Singapore People’s Party (SPP) from 2011, and was widely touted as a successor to party leader Chiam See Tong.
It’s not everyday that political parties get compared to one of the most popular cinematic franchises out there.
Now that the election season’s in full swing, political parties are pulling out all the stops in a bid to pull votes to their side. But with 11 opposition parties gunning for one of the 93 seats, it’s easy to get lost in the flurry of campaigns coming out left right and centre.
For Instagram user @limxjoel, or Joel Lim, it was the perfect opportunity to geek out — both as a pop-culture nerd and as a public relations (PR) enthusiast.
