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Drugs worth more than $236k seized in island-wide raid

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SINGAPORE – In an island-wide operation that ran over six days from Feb 27 to Mar 4, more than $236,000 worth of drugs were seized by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB).

A total of 103 suspected drug offenders were also arrested during this operation.

One of the bigger cases included the arrest of six suspected offenders and the seizure of 1.5kg of heroin, 430g of ‘Ice’ and 338 ‘Ecstasy’ tablets among other drugs. The estimated street value of the drugs is more than $210,000, according to a statement by the CNB. 

A suspected drug courier was also arrested at Woodlands Checkpoint on Mar 2. The 43-year-old Malaysian man was found to be in possession of 1.3kg of heroin, 77g of ‘Ice’ and 1,000 Erimin-5 tablets.

The suspected intended recipients of these drugs –  three Singaporean men aged 33, 57 and 60 – were also arrested. CNB also found the younger men to be in possession of more drugs.

It added that investigations into the drug activities of all the arrested suspects are ongoing.

prabukm@sph.com.sg

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Friday, March 4, 2016 – 18:55
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New discovery paves the way for more precise treatment of white blood cell cancer

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March 04, 2016 8:50 PM

SINGAPORE – Different versions of a gene prevalent among Asian children, including Singaporeans, have been found to make patients of a type of white blood cell cancer more sensitive to chemotherapy in a bad way.



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Singapore out of World Team Table Tennis Championships

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REPORTING FROM SHAH ALAM

The Singapore women’s table tennis team exited the World Team Table Tennis Championships at the Malawati Stadium today (March 4) after a 3-2 quarter-final loss to North Korea.



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Budget 2016 will have strong focus on the economy: Heng Swee Keat

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Finance Minister also says the Government will be “particularly prudent” with this year’s Budget.

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MOE to merge 22 secondary schools into 11 schools by 2018

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SINGAPORE – In a move that marks the largest school merger in five years, 22 secondary schools will be merged into 11 schools by 2018.

According to a report by The Straits Times, the Ministry of Education (MOE) will merge the seven schools which will not have a Secondary 1 cohort in 2016 with seven other schools in 2017.

The schools that will be merged are: 

1. Balestier Hill Secondary and Beatty Secondary

2. Henderson Secondary and Bukit Merah Secondary

3. MacPherson Secondary and Broadrick Secondary

4. North View Secondary and Northland Secondary

5. Pioneer Secondary and Boon Lay Secondary

6. Siglap Secondary and Coral Secondary

7. Si Ling Secondary and Marsiling Secondary

In 2018, the following schools will be merged:

1. Bedok North Secondary and Damai Secondary

2. Bishan Park Secondary and Peirce Secondary

3. Chong Boon Secondary will join Yio Chu Kang Secondary

4. Greenview Secondary and Loyang Secondary.

This move comes on the heels of the four merged schools which are currently running: Fajar Secondary, Ping Yi Secondary, Bartley Secondary and Tanglin Secondary.

Falling student numbers was cited by MOE as being a reason for this merger. According to The Straits Times, it said that a “sufficient critical mass” is required for a school to be able to serve its students with a range of educational programmes and co-curricular activities. 

The Straits Times said that the names of the merged schools have not been released yet.

prabukm@sph.com.sg

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Friday, March 4, 2016 – 17:17
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Mother of dead Singaporean national serviceman hits out at government in viral Facebook post

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THE mother of a dead Singaporean national serviceman uploaded an anguished post on Facebook after her family lost a lawsuit against the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).

In her post, which was uploaded yesterday, Felicia Seah suggested it was unjust to be ordered to bear the legal costs of those she believes were responsible for her son’s death. She bitterly criticized government officials, sarcastically remarking that they are “the experts in their fields. They must know best. They do no wrong.”

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My dearest Dom, my heart continues to bleed for you. It has been 3years and 10months since you were taken from me and…

Posted by In memory of Dominique Sarron Lee on Thursday, March 3, 2016

The Singapore High Court earlier dismissed a lawsuit initiated by Seah and her family against the Singaporean military. The lawsuit alleged that Seah’s son, Dominique Sarron Lee, died in 2012 due to an allergic reaction to smoke grenades used during a military exercise. Lee’s family have accused the SAF, Lee’s platoon commander, and the exercise’s chief safety officer of negligence.

But according to Today, the court agreed with the defendants, who argued that a legal provision – Section 14 of the Government Proceedings Act – protects them from negligence lawsuits if the deaths and injuries take place during service.

SEE ALSO: Dead men can’t fight: Family sues Singapore Armed Forces for death of son

The Straits Times reported the court ordered Lee’s family to pay S$22,000 (or nearly US$16,000) to the three defendants.

In 2012, 21-year-old Lee suffered breathing difficulties and passed out during a military exercise which saw the use of smoke grenades. He was brought to a hospital, but was ultimately pronounced dead. A coroner’s inquiry the following year determined that Lee had suffered an acute allergic reaction to zinc chloride – a key component in SAF smoke grenades.

Addressing the Facebook post to Lee, his mother ruefully wrote: “I have been worn-down, beaten and defeated by the very government I taught you to trust; worn-down, beaten and defeated by the very system I counseled you to have faith in; worn-down, beaten and defeated by the very people I advised you to respect and honor.”

The post had more than 6,100 reactions and 3,209 shares at the time of writing.

The post Mother of dead Singaporean national serviceman hits out at government in viral Facebook post appeared first on Asian Correspondent.

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2015 A-Level results: Best academic performance in 10 years

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SINGAPORE – The release of the A-Level examination results on Friday afternoon (Mar 4) saw the 2015 cohort achieve the highest pass rate in 10 years since the last revision of the curriculum.

According to a report by The Straits Times, an estimated 93.1 per cent of the 13,582 students who took the national examination, achieved at least three H2 passes, with a pass in General Paper or Knowledge and Inquiry.

One such student was 20-year-old Brendan Lau, who in an exclusive interview with AsiaOne, revealed that he had scored five As and a B for his A-Level examination. 

Brendan, who is deaf, had to work extra hard to keep up in class and communicate with friends. He became so good at his studies that many of his able-bodied classmates looked to him for help when they struggling with their work.

Private candidates who took the A-Level examination will receive their results by post. Candidates who have SingPass accounts can check their results online via the internet Examination Results Release System (iERRS) on the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board’s website.

prabukm@sph.com.sg

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Friday, March 4, 2016 – 16:18
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The boys have just landed in Singapore! In just over 24 hours, we will be able t…

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The boys have just landed in Singapore! In just over 24 hours, we will be able to see them perform live again for the first time in over 20 years. Comment with an emoji to show us your level of excitement right now!
Limited tickets are still available through SISTIC at http://www.sistic.com.sg/events/hsbc0316!


The boys have just landed in Singapore! In just over 24 hours, we will be able to see them perform live again for the first time in over 20 years. Comment with an emoji to show us your level of excitement right now!

Limited tickets available at http://www.sistic.com.sg/events/hsbc0316

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Philippines boards N. Korean freighter after UN sanctions

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Philippine authorities said Friday they had inspected a North Korean vessel within hours of the United Nations ordering cargo checks as part of tough new sanctions over Pyongyang’s nuclear programme.

An inspection team with bomb-sniffing dogs boarded the cargo ship Jin Teng at Subic port on Thursday after it was placed on a “watch list” by their headquarters, local coast guard commander Raul Belesario told AFP.

The inspection of the 6,830-tonne vessel came after a UN Security Council resolution was passed on Thursday morning, local time, requiring all countries to inspect cargo going to and from North Korea.

It also banned or restricted exports of coal, iron, iron ore and other minerals from North Korea, and prohibited the supply of aviation fuel, including for rockets.

Belesario said inspectors did not detect anything illegal on the boat, which was carrying palm oil kernels, but that it would be inspected again before it left the port, about 80 kilometres north of Manila.

He said he did not know when it would depart.

Belesario refused to say why the ship was on the watch list. The national coast guard spokesman in Manila and the foreign affairs ministry spokesman declined to give details.

But Belesario said the watch list directive triggered the action.

“According to our guidelines, ships that are placed on a watch list require comprehensive inspection,” Belesario said.

Asked to comment on the Philippine action, Kim Song-Jin, first secretary for the North Korean embassy in Thailand told AFP: “We are closely watching the situation.” The embassy also represents North Korea’s interests in the Philippines.

The Jin Teng is owned and managed by a Hong Kong-based company called Golden Soar Development, according to shipping monitor websites.

The UN resolution was passed on Wednesday night in New York, which was Thursday morning in the Philippines, after North Korea made its fourth nuclear test and rocket launch.

In response, Pyongyang fired six-short-range missiles into the sea on Thursday, while North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un ordered its nuclear arsenal put on standby for pre-empty use at anytime.

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Friday, March 4, 2016 – 16:29
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Japan to suspend construction for US base relocation in Okinawa

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Japan’s government will accept a court-mediated settlement plan and suspend construction work for the planned relocation of a US airbase in Okinawa and will begin a new round of talks with local authorities who want the base moved off the island.

The government in Tokyo and authorities in the southern island of Okinawa have long been at loggerheads over the relocation of the US Marines airbase at Futenma, an urban area on the island.

Tokyo wants to move the base to a less populated area but Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga wants the base off the island altogether.

Abe’s government had already suspended construction work voluntarily for a month last year to allow time for talks with island authorities, but failed to achieve a meaningful solution.

He said the government’s stance that relocating the Futenma base within the island was the only option had not changed. However, the government would again suspend construction work to give talks another chance to succeed. “There is no change to the government’s stance that the relocation to the Henoko area is the sole choice for the restoration of the Futenma base,” Abe told reporters. “But, if the current situation, in which the government and Okinawa prefecture are suing each other, continues, the Futenma base … might very well remain fixed there for years to come,”he said.

The United States and Japan agreed in 1996 to close Futenma and move its facilities elsewhere on the island. However, relocation stalled due to opposition from Okinawa residents worried about noise, pollution and crime.

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