Category: Singapuraku

Pasukan Operasi Khas Dikerah Akibat Kekecohan Di Marine Terrace

Satu pertikaian berlaku di Blok 52 Marine Terrace malam tadi, dan mencetuskan kekecohan hingga unit elit Pasukan Operasi Khas (SOC) terpaksa dikerahkan.

Polis menyatakan pihaknya menerima panggilan meminta bantuan mengenai kes itu pada 6.56 petang tadi.

Setiba di tempat kejadian, para pegawai polis mengesahkan bahawa satu pertikaian berlaku di lokasi tersebut. Mereka yang terlibat dinasihati supaya jangan mengganggu ketenteraman awam. Tiada bantuan tambahan diperlukan dari pihak berkuasa, menurut polis.

Tiga video yang dirakam oleh Encik Ahmad dan dikirimkan kepada BERITAMediaCorp, menunjukkan sekurang-kurangnya 10 pegawai berpakaian seragam dilihat di merata kawasan di luar flat tersebut.

Sebuah kereta ambulans dan pegawai-pegawai Pasukan Pertahanan Awam Singapura (SCDF) juga dilihat di tempat kejadian dalam video-video itu.

Seorang rakan Encik Ahmad, yang menggunakan nama ‘Prince Ichiro San’ di Facebook, mengirimkan video-video tersebut kepada BERITAMediaCorp. Beliau berkata rakannya itu, yang tinggal di Marine Terrace, melihat pegawai-pegawai SOC dikerahkan ke kawasan itu.

Menurutnya, Encik Ahmad terdengar beberapa orang berkata satu pergaduhan berlaku di lokasi berkenaan, dan pasukan SOC kelihatan siap dengan perisai sekitar 8.00 malam tadi.

Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg

February 9, 2015
Tokoh Agama Singapura Ustaz Syed Hamid Syed Ahmad Alkaff Meninggal Dunia

Pemergian tokoh agama mapan serta pembimbing haji dan umrah terkenal, Ustaz Syed Hamid Syed Ahmad Alkaff, merupakan satu kehilangan besar bagi masyarakat Islam Singapura.

Menteri Bertanggungjawab bagi Ehwal Masyarakat Islam, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, berkata demikian semasa ditemui wartawan di Masjid Sultan.

Jenazah Allahyarham Ustaz Syed Hamid selamat dikebumikan petang tadi, selepas disolatkan di Masjid Sultan tengah hari tadi selepas waktu Zohor.

Dr Yaacob mengambil keputusan untuk memendekkan lawatan rasmi beliau ke Arab Saudi sebagai tanda penghormatan kepada Allahyarham yang merupakan seorang guru agama yang amat disegani ramai.

Anggota keluarga, sahabat handai, dan juga anak murid dan jemaah di bawah bimbingan Allahyarham membanjiri Masjid Sultan bagi menunaikan solat jenazah sejurus selepas waktu Zohor.

“Saya rasa ini satu kehilangan besar bagi masyarakat kita, kerana beliau sudah banyak menyumbang kepada masyarakat kita, dan sudah banyak membimbing anak-anak murid dalam kelas-kelas membimbing dan sebagainya.

“Saya rasa yang lebih penting bagi saya ialah bagaimanana kita boleh gunakan legasi yang ditinggalkan Allahyarham demi kita memupuk generasi baru, dari segi sumbangan mereka dan apa yang mereka boleh lakukan untuk memastikan setiap anak muda kita dapat bimbingan agama sedikit sebanyak,” ujar Dr Yaacob.

Allahyarham juga, selama 35 tahun, menjadi imam dan khatib bagi Masjid Hang Jebat, selain bergiat aktif sebagai pendakwah di Masjid Darussalam dan Masjid Hang Jebat. Beliau sering dijemput menyampaikan ceramah di Malaysia dan Indonesia.

Sebelum menceburi bidang agama, Allahyarham merupakan seorang seniman terkenal dengan nama S Hamid pada 1950-an, dan sering dianggap sebagai antara perintis seni muzik Melayu di Singapura.

Antara lagu-lagu terkenalnya termasuk ‘Cenderawasih’, ‘Laila’ dan ‘Kasih Ibu’. Lagu ‘Cenderawasih’ nyanyian beliau kemudian dinyanyikan ramai penyanyi lain seperti A Halim dan Jamal Abdillah. Sebagai pelakon filem, beliau pernah berlakon di samping P Ramlee dalam filem ‘Bakti’ dan ‘Rachun Dunia’, serta beberapa buah filem Cathay Keris.

Dr Yaacob, yang mengenali Allahyarham dan keluarganya sejak usia kecil lagi, berkata, sikap kesedaran dan keikhlasannya harus dicontohi masyarakat Islam Singapura.

“Saya rasa dari segi kegigihan Allahyarham terus menyumbang, selama 38 tahun di Masjid Hang Jebat, menunjukkan kesedaran dan keikhlasan beliau untuk menyumbang, dan saya rasa itu adalah satu ciri yang kita harus ikuti, dan kalaulah kita buatkan ini salah satu ciri dalam masyarakat kita, saya rasa ini akan terus meningkatkan masyarakat kita,” ujar Dr Yaacob.

Allahyarham meninggalkan lapan anak, 12 cucu dan beberapa orang cicit. Kedua-dua isteri Allahyarham sudah meninggal dunia.

Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg

February 9, 2015
Has Lawyer M Ravi Had Enough Of His Client CPF Blogger Roy Ngerng?

The following video, believed to have been recorded on Friday, Feb. 6, 2015, outside the Subordinate Courts, shows lawyer M Ravi talking at length about his client, CPF blogger Roy Ngerng.

The purpose of Ravi’s court attendance, as he explains in the video, appears to be for an application for Ngerng to leave Singapore’s jurisdiction to go to Norway.

But Ngerng didn’t show up.

Here is a snippet of what Ravi said to the camera at 3 minutes 25 seconds:

“And you know what, to date, I’ve done so much of work and he’s keeping all the money, a hundred thousand I guess, to the tune of $70,000 or so. And what has happened?

He’s now blogging I understand.

Why is he not in this court when he wants to leave jurisdiction today to Norway? The application had been… the court is just waiting for him. Why is he not turning up to court? Why is he not answering anybody? Why is he not calling my office? Why did he not say that ‘Ravi or even a message I’m sorry I’m not turning up, I’m not leaving the country’. There’s no respect for the judge. Yet he has the gall and temerity to say that our judges are corrupted, our judges are not independent and this and that. And what respect do you have?

He goes behind my back, he goes and blogs, you know? And I’m going to discharge, if he is continuing his behaviour, either he goes and see a psychiatrist…

[…]

… because I’m fighting for him tooth and nail and he’s swindling the money.”

Here is the video:

Post by Choo Ming Hui.

Update, Feb. 8, 2015, 12.30am: The previous uploaded video is no longer accessible:

Post by Cheng Yong Chew.

A rift appeared to have occurred between lawyer and client when Ravi had to publicly distance himself a few weeks ago from a potentially libellous online article put out by Ngerng and his friends.

Ravi also said Ngerng is “too impulsive” to contest the next General Election with him in the same team.

We’d include more details about the origins of the video when we find out more.

*Update*

The video was produced by an individual by the name of Teo En Ming, who is popularly known in the Hardwarezone forums as sgvideoman.

Teo raised eyebrows last year when he filed a police report after his Hardwarezone forum account ‘sgvideoman’ was banned from the forums by one of the moderators.

His ‘fame’ on the Hardwarezone forum stemmed from his claim that he is being targeted by the Singapore Government and had lost two jobs because of it. His claim can be found in this Hardwarezone thread titled “(Wanbao material) Guy gets fired for shltting everywhere in the company“.

Teo also stated that he has filed a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Council about the Singapore Government for persecuting and blacklisting him. He also claimed that he could have been poisoned by the Singapore Government in his complaint.

Source: http://mothership.sg

February 8, 2015
3 Singaporeans Charged In Court For Disorderly Behaviour And Attacking Police Officers

Three Singaporean men were charged in court on Saturday morning for disorderly behavior and attacking police officers at a Thaipusam event held earlier in the week.

Ramachandra Chandramohan, 32, was alleged to have punched, kicked and verbally abused four police officers. He was also charged with disorderly behavior and faces seven charges in total, the highest number among the trio.

Jaya Kumar Krishnasamy, 28, faces three charges. He was charged with disorderly behavior, allegedly hurling vulgarities at a police officer and obstructing another police officer from carrying out his duties.

Gunasegaran Rajendran, 33, faces a disorderly behavior charge and is alleged to have abused a police officer.

The trio were calm and emotionless when their charges were read to them in court through an interpreter.

They were accompanied to court by four family members and friends. It is unclear how they are related, but one family member who declined to be named said that the three men are cousins.

The three men were part of a group which hired drummers in the Thaipusam procession. The drummers were asked to stop playing by the police and a scuffle broke out.

A video of the scuffle was posted online and it sparked online outcry, with some members of the public asking why is music banned at Thaipusam while lion dances and Malay wedding music are allowed in public.

Responding, Second Minister for Home Affairs S. Iswaran said on Thursday that the ban on music instruments applied to all foot processions, including religious events, since 1973.

Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam also said on Friday that lion dances and Malay wedding music are social events, not religious processions. He added that only Hindus are allowed to hold religious foot processions and urged the public to back police’s actions at the Thaipusam event.

The trio are on police bail and their cases will be heard in court again on March 6. If convicted, they face maximum jail sentences of between three months and seven years, maximum fines of between $2,000 and $5,000, or both.

Ramachandra Chandramohan is also liable to be caned if convicted of attacking police officers.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

February 8, 2015
Thaipusam Incident – My Side Of The Story

Dear everyone,

For the past three days, there had been various reports, news & articles with regards to the 3 men arrested for the incident that happened at Thaipusam 2015. I am one of the 3 men who were arrested at the incident. This post would be my part of the story, not to justify what I have done, but to let the public know my point of view.

My cousin brother was one of the kavadi bearers in Thaipusam. The first time we were approached was at the Perumal temple by the temple officials. They ordered the “Urumi group” boys who were playing the “Thavil(indian traditional instrument)” to stop playing the music. We seeked their cooperation and understanding to allow the boys to play the thavil while he was piercing the 108 spikes, this was so that he can be distracted from the pain. My brother was carrying a traditional kavadi which weighed roughly about 100kg, therefore he needed to be distracted from the pain as well as the piercings. However, the temple officials were adamant about not letting the urumi boys play while he was piercing. When we asked why they could not let the boys play, they replied that these were regulations set by the SPF, and that they were merely following SPF’s orders. We then abided to their rules and regulations and asked the Urumi boys to stop the music.

We then left the Perumal temple, and started the holy procession in a very solemn manner. The urumi group we hired did not play any music as they were sent off by the higher officials and were not allowed to follow my brother’s kavadi. However, as we approached Kitchener Road, the urumi group boys joined us again. They were playing music for us and followed us till Desker Road. At Desker Road, the urumi boys were then pulled aside again, aggressively this time, by the temple officials . My cousin brother who observed the situation went in to mediate as those urumi boys were engaged and paid by us. He questioned those who pulled the boys away on why they were being pulled away, and that these boys were engaged by us. He argued with them asking why weren’t we allowed to play the Urumi & Thavil which are traditional indian instruments. It was emphasized in the media that we were the one playing the instruments at the procession. However, the truth is, we paid and hired a urumi group to play music for my brother’s kavadi. There were about 15 to 20 temple officials and blue uniformed (unable to identify whether they were police or certis cisco in the chaotic situation) men who were involved in the argument. Suddenly, there were a group of guys (about 20-30 guys) who barged in and started manhandling us, trying to push us away from the urumi group. I noticed that my cousin brother was manhandled, being pulled by his tshirt to and fro to a corner, and i also saw his wife was running behind him, trying to pull the husband away from them. A group of men were pushing me and trying to bring me to the ground violently. At the point of time, I noticed my sister-in-law being pushed to the ground, that was when I got agitated and aggravated and I rushed towards my sister in law. From my point of view, the person who pushed my sister in law was wearing a white tshirt. I broke free from the group of men, and I punched him, thats when10 men pinned me down on the road aggressively, suffocating me. They kneed and backheeled me on my face, and said “you dare to punch a police officer”. That was when I realised this group of men were police officers. We were then brought back to the station.

It was stated in all the reports and media news that “3 men were arrested and they smelled strongly of alcohol”. I would like to clarify this statement because this is not the truth at all. I do not consume alcohol AT ALL. There were tonnes of other people at that chaotic situation, & the alcohol smell could have came from anyone at all. So it was wrong for them to have accused us of being drunk and creating nuisance. How could media like “Channel NewsAsia, Vasantham Tamil News, Straits times etc” publish in their news that I was drunk and creating nuisance. Under what basis or what proof did they release this news? Was the conclusion that we were drunk based on the report giving by the SPF?

Secondly, how can a policeman (whose identity was later revealed) push a woman down to the ground? Isn’t it a violent act against a woman (under the woman’s charter)?Why is it that in all the media, this action of the police force was not justified? In my point of view, this is not the behaviour of a police officer, but it is more of a rowdy act. My nephew and niece who witnessed the whole incident were traumatised and could not stop crying. In that chaotic situation, it did not hit my mind that it was a police officer who behaved such.

Also in the statement provided by Minister S ISWARAN in the article “S ISWARAN: PLEASE DON’T OVERREACT ABOUT THE THAIPUSAM INCIDENT posted on 5 Feb 2015 in “The Real Singapore”, “He acknowledged that three people were arrested at the Thaipusam procession on Tuesday for playing drums.” My question to you is Sir, How could you have acknowledge a statement which was not true? We were not drummers or we were not playing the instruments. All instruments were played by the Urumi group we hired.

Thirdly, the root cause to all this chaos was the playing of traditional indian instruments, such as Urumi and Thavil. Being the organizers of Thaipusam, the Hindu Endowment Board should stand up for the Indians and justify the playing of indian traditional instruments for a holy procession. I voiced out to the officials that if Lion Dance are allowed for chinese events and kompangs are allowed for malay events, why aren’t Indians allowed to play our traditional instruments. I did not mean it as a racial remark, but just as a comparison. But I was labelled a racist, giving racist remarks, which is again a false accusation.

In summary, this is my point of view. I am not here to justify my actions, but just to create awareness amongst the public who had been giving different stories everyday. It is NOT TRUE that I was drunk during this chaos as mentioned in all the official news reports. In my opinion, I feel Hindu Endowment Board is not deemed fit to represent us, Indians. They do not know what are our needs, and I believe they could have handled the situation better, and giving us proper explanations when we questioned them, and not pushing the blame to the police and the Govt.

It is heartwarming to see people from the public coming forward to give their opinion and feedback about the whole situation. I believe they are entitled to their freedom of the speech and should not be questioned or interrogated by any of the higher officials

Thank you for taking the time to read through this post.

Regards,
Mohan.

Note: This post first appeared on Mohan’s Facebook under the moniker of King Chola Hercules.

Source: www.facebook.com/pages/The-Alternative-View

February 7, 2015