Category: Singapuraku

LTA: Non-Cabbies Offering Paid Rides May Need To Be Regulated

Drivers who run chauffeur services under ride-booking apps such as Uber could soon be required to obtain a vocational licence which is currently compulsory only for taxi drivers.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday said it is looking into removing this exemption, as a way to ensure the safety of passengers taking private-hire rides.

In a forum letter published in The Straits Times, the LTA said chauffeured vehicle services have become more accessible to the public with technology and, given the industry’s recent growth, it is studying possible measures to safeguard commuter interest.

The taxi industry cried foul recently, following news of ride-matching apps and rental companies working together to run their own fleet of “taxis”.

The rental firms lease out cars to drivers at a rate cheaper than taxis. Hirers then use these vehicles to fulfil bookings from apps such as Uber and GrabTaxi.

These companies and drivers, however, do not have to meet the stringent requirements imposed on the taxi industry, such as vocational training.

The LTA did not say whether a licensing requirement would apply only to drivers who do chauffeuring via apps or to the entire industry, which includes corporate charters and limousine services.

Nor did it elaborate if it would affect drivers who use their own vehicles to provide paid rides.

Uber drivers told The Straits Times that the time and money required to take a vocational course will be an extra burden.

Uber driver Sam Samioen Moksam, 50, said: “Passengers rate drivers after every trip, and this already ensures we provide a safe and reliable ride.

“Falling short can earn a driver a temporary ban or, in a worse case, (lead to his contract) being terminated.”

Another driver, Mr Yu Kim Reed, asked why vocational licences are being implemented now, given that chauffeur services have been around for so long.

“The only difference is that a (car hire) call centre has been replaced by the Internet,” Mr Yu, 30, said.

National Taxi Association executive adviser Ang Hin Kee said a driver rating system cannot fully replace vocational training, refresher courses and medical examinations which taxi drivers have to undergo.

Mandating vocational licences will be a “welcome start”, but he said rental car firms and transport apps should also abide by other requirements that taxi companies are subjected to by the LTA.

These include ensuring their fleets are regularly maintained and serviced.

App companies said they are willing to work with the LTA should vocational licences be required.

Uber’s Singapore general manager Yaniv Goder said it hopes to be “included in the consultation process”.

A GrabTaxi spokesman said it is in discussions with industry partners to develop a “comprehensive curriculum for private-hire drivers” and that it will encourage drivers to take up vocational licensing.

Cabby Henry Tay, 45, said vocational licences will help the authorities keep track of drivers and offer passengers assurance of a safe ride.

“We don’t want any Tom, Dick or Harry picking up passengers, do we?”

Source: www.straitstimes.com

June 10, 2015
Dr. Fined $2000 For Administering Chemo Drug Wrongly

A young doctor who administered a chemotherapy drug the wrong way, putting the patient at risk of “severe neurological damage”, has been fined S$2,000 by the Singapore Medical Council (SMC).

Dr Garuna Murthee Kavitha, 32, had given the drug intrathecally, or into the membrane of the spinal cord, when she should have fed it intravenously to the patient.

The error stemmed from the ward sending the wrong medicine, which Dr Kavitha did not check, the SMC’s disciplinary tribunal heard on April 21. She pleaded guilty to the charge.

In mitigation, the lawyer acting for Dr Kavitha, who was practising as a Medical Officer at Singapore General Hospital, said the error was unintentional and stressed that she had disclosed the error immediately.

She also never shied away from accepting responsibility and was a very young doctor who had learnt from this incident, her lawyer added. In contrast, previous similar cases saw more senior doctors being involved, while the errors took longer to detect before the patient was informed, and even medical records had been tampered with.

Testimonials from Dr Kavitha’s superiors and colleagues, as well as feedback from the family of another patient were also submitted during the hearing.

While it noted the “strong” testimonials attested to Dr Kavitha’s work ethic and integrity, as well as her Best Medical Officer award by SingHealth in 2013, the SMC’s disciplinary tribunal said a censure alone was inappropriate. It would not “reflect the seriousness of the conduct, nor would it deter such lapses or preserve public confidence in the medical profession”, it added.

The disciplinary tribunal also censured Dr Kavitha and asked her for a written undertaking that she would not repeat the same conduct, as well as for her to bear the costs and expenses of the inquiry.

Source: www.todayonline.com

June 10, 2015
ST Marine Executive To Be Charged In Connection With Corruption Crackdown

The final executive listed in the ST Marine corruption bust, Patrick Lee Swee Ching, is expected to be in the State Courts Wednesday (Jun 10) to face charges, after four other high-level executives formerly from the firm were similarly charged earlier.

Lee served as group financial controller of ST Marine between 2004 and 2007. Following his arrest pending police investigations, he was later released on bail and allowed to fly back to the United States.

In December 2014, four other high-level executives from the firm were charged with various counts of corruption.

Former ST Marine president See Leong Teck faces seven charges of conspiring to pay more than S$556,000 in bribes to customers, while former ST Aerospace president Chang Cheow Teck faces three charges of corruption totaling more than S$273,000.

Two others involved in the case are former senior vice-president Mok Kim Whang, who was charged with one count of corruption amounting more than S$43,000, and former ST Marine group financial controller Ong Tek Liam, who faces the most counts – 118 in total – amounting to more than $521,000, in alleged entertainment expenses.

ST Marine and ST Aerospace are subsidiaries of engineering firm ST Engineering, providing building and repair services in their various fields.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 10, 2015
Welder Helps Nab Molest Suspect In Jurong

He had just exited a supermarket when he heard a woman shouting for help.

Mr Amirul Islam, 26, witnessed a man fleeing the scene at Jurong West Street 93.

Fearing that the woman might have been robbed, Mr Amirul went up to her to find out what had happened.

The 42-year-old woman said she had been molested and asked if he could help catch the man.

Mr Amirul, a welder from Bangladesh, told The New Paper over the phone: “I thought, ‘I must catch him.’”

He and off-duty police officer Soh Beng Kuan chased the man for a short distance before nabbing him near a playground.

Police arrived soon after and arrested the 25-year-old man.

‘Why is this man running?’

The incident happened at about 11.15pm on Saturday (June 6).

Mr Amirul said he had just left Prime Supermarket and was heading back to Blue Stars Dormitory at Kian Teck Lane when he saw a man and a woman.

Mr Amirul Islam (above).

“The woman shouted, ‘Help! Help!’” said Mr Amirul.

“I asked her, “Sister, what’s happening? Why is this man running? Did he steal your hand phone or bag?”

Mr Amirul said the woman told him that the man had touched her body and asked if he could help catch the person.

‘Forgive me, I go home’

After he was caught, the suspect pleaded with Mr Amirul and the woman for forgiveness.

Mr Amirul recalled: “He said, ‘Sorry, sorry. My fault… Forgive me, I go home.’”

The man claimed he had lost control of himself after drinking too much, said Mr Amirul.

Police said in a statement on Monday (June 8) that investigations against the suspect are ongoing.

The offence of Outrage of Modesty carries a jail term of up to two years or a fine. Those found guilty are also liable to caning.

Source: www.tnp.sg

June 10, 2015
HSBC To Cut Jobs Globally To Focus On Asia

HSBC will slash as many as 50,000 jobs worldwide in an effort to streamline its businesses and improve its sluggish performance as it shifts its focus back to fast-growing Asian economies, Europe’s biggest bank said yesterday.

About half of the staff cuts will come from the sale of HSBC’s businesses in Brazil and Turkey, while the other half will come from cutting about 10 per cent of the remaining 233,000 staff by consolidating IT and back-office operations, and closing branches. About 7,000 to 8,000 of the workforce reduction are expected to be in Britain, where it is based.

When asked by TODAY, Mr Daniel Fitzpatrick, head of HSBC Singapore’s corporate communications, declined to comment on whether there would be any job cuts or gains in Singapore. The bank, which has been in Singapore since 1877, employs about 3,000 people here, its website shows.

The global workforce reduction exercise is part of a second attempt by HSBC chief executive Stuart Gulliver to boost profits since he took the helm at the start of 2011. The previous effort was foiled by high compliance costs, fines, low interest rates and weak growth.

The cuts will leave HSBC with about 208,000 staff by 2017, down from 258,000 at the end of last year, though the bank said it would be hiring in growth businesses and its compliance division.

HSBC also said it will cut its assets on a risk-adjusted basis by US$290 billion (S$392 billion) by 2017. That will include a reduction of US$140 billion in the Global Banking and Markets division, its investment bank, where returns have suffered in tough market conditions.

HSBC also lowered its target for return on equity to “greater than 10 per cent” by 2017, down from a previous target of 12 to 15 per cent by next year. Overall, HSBC aims to cut costs by between US$4.5 billion and US$5 billion by the end of 2017.

A key tenet of HSBC’s strategy unveiled yesterday is to expand its presence in China and across the Asia-Pacific region. HSBC has a sizeable presence across Asia deriving from its deep historic ties to the region.

It was founded in Hong Kong in 1865 when the city was a British colony in order to finance growing trade between China and Europe.

“Asia is expected to show high growth and become the centre of global trade over the next decade,’’ said Mr Gulliver.

HSBC’s plans to accelerate its investments in Asia will involve the expansion of its asset management and insurance businesses in a bid to earn more profits from the region’s rapidly expanding class of newly wealthy.

In particular, the bank is planning to expand in southern China’s Pearl River Delta manufacturing hub in southern Guangdong province, which is next door to Hong Kong and one of the wealthiest regions in the world’s No 2 economy.

It is also planning a similar expansion exercise in South-east Asia, where booming economic growth in countries such as Indonesia is swelling the ranks of the middle classes.

The Asian pivot raises the likelihood that HSBC will shift its headquarters to Hong Kong.

HSBC has set out criteria it will use to evaluate whether to move its headquarters from London, where a bank levy cost the lender £700 million (S$1.45 billion) last year. These include factors such as economic growth, the tax system, government support for the growth of the banking system, long-term stability, and the possibility of attracting good staff.

The bank said it would complete the review of the possible move by the end of this year.

Source: www.todayonline.com

June 10, 2015