I am seriously wondering if MUIS trains their staff any form of PR .
If have problem, minta kerjasama lah bukan beri arahan.
Saya ini orang luar. Saya bukan staff awak yang awak nak beri arahan dan hantar message marah-marah.
Sampai hilang rasa hormat pada Tuan Imam…
Source: Idham Ahmad
What started as a routine trip to Kuala Lumpur turned into a nightmare for a Singaporean businessman.
Mr Herman Zaidin, 31, was driving home to Singapore alone along the North-South Highway near Simpang Renggam in Johor on Sunday evening when a group of more than 10 men assaulted and robbed him.
The attack came after one of them claimed to have been injured after hitting his motorcycle against Mr Herman’s car on the heavily congested road.
During the attack, one of the men even used a spanner to smash his Mercedes Benz’s windscreen and hit his left eye.
“There is now internal bleeding in my eye and my vision is blurry.
“I’m very worried, as a doctor told me these’s a possibility that my vision may be permanently affected after this,” Mr Herman told The New Paper after visiting the hospital yesterday.
He has since made police reports about his ordeal in both Singapore and Johor Baru.
Singapore police and an officer at Simpang Renggam Police Station confirmed the reports.
Mr Herman told TNP he drives to the Malaysian capital almost weekly for business trips.
The highway was congested with bumper-to-bumper traffic as he was driving home his Singapore-registered car at around 11.30pm.
He was in the left-most lane and was about 90km away from Tuas Checkpoint when he felt something hitting the rear of his vehicle.
When he looked at his side mirror, he saw a motorcyclist falling off his bike.
Worried that the rider could have been injured, Mr Herman said he stopped his car.
All of a sudden, more than 10 men, who looked to be in their late teens and early 20s, came towards him on motorcycles and surrounded his car.
Mr Herman said: “They accused me of causing the accident and started banging on my car. They also hurled vulgarities and asked me to step out.
“The rider who hit me also came forward and demanded a compensation. I panicked.”
One of the men then took out a spanner and used it to smash his windscreen.
Seeing this, Mr Herman decided to wind down his window to talk to the men.
He said: “I had no choice as my window could have been broken next. I had to talk to them to find out exactly what they wanted.”
What happened next took place so quickly that it seemed like a blur now, he said.
“One of the guys unlocked the door and opened it. Then they started to rain blows on me. One guy used the spanner and hit my left eye.
“With one hand, I held on to my seat belt while I covered my face with the other.”
The men ordered him to get out of his car, but he refused as he feared they might drive away in it.
Realising that he would not budge, the men ordered him to hand over his wallet containing about S$300 and RM400 (about S$130)
After he gave in to their demands, they also helped themselves to his in-vehicle camera, his mobile phone and its power bank.
ESCAPE
They also ordered him to open the boot from the driver’s seat. When he gave in, they took his laptop computer which had been placed there and fled on their bikes.
Mr Herman said he lost about $2,400 worth of valuables.
He said: “I (later) stepped out of my car and when I went to the rear, I saw no dent there.
“I’m sure the accident was staged, for after the biker fell off, he immediately asked me for compensation.
“The ordeal lasted about 10 minutes, but it was the longest 10 minutes of my life.”
Mr Herman said he was disappointed that no-one came to his aid.
“The road was congested so I’m sure many motorists saw what had happened. Maybe they thought it was a genuine accident or were just too afraid to step in.”
In pain and nursing a badly bruised eye, he managed to drive to the Johor checkpoint. Due to the congestion, he only reached the checkpoint about 1½ hours later, when it usually takes 45 minutes.
He told the immigration officers about what had happened and they referred him to the Malaysian police.
Mr Herman continued his journey home after filing a report. By the time he got to the Tuas Checkpoint, it was already about 3am on Monday.
There, police and immigration officers saw his bruises and asked him what happened.
They called for an ambulance, but he declined the service as he wanted to go home first to park his car.
Mr Herman only called for an ambulance when he arrived home in the central part of Singapore.
He was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where a doctor told him that even though he had bruises all over his body, the main worry was his eye.
He now needs to go for further check-ups.
Mr Herman said: “Looking back, I’m lucky that my injuries were not life-threatening. The men could have stabbed me.
“However, the incident has left me shaken and I don’t think I will be driving to Kuala Lumpur anytime soon. I will fly there instead until I feel brave enough to drive again.”
Source: The New Paper
Another car parallel importer has failed to deliver vehicles on which deposits have been paid – the second such case in less than a month.
TLC Cars Singapore, one of several small motor firms in Turf City, off Bukit Timah Road, has closed its doors, leaving customers in the lurch.
The development comes barely a month after Exodus Global, a parallel importer in Ubi Avenue 3, did the same thing.
Like those affected by Exodus’ move, customers of TLC have lodged police reports. Police said they are looking into the matter.
Logistics manager W.Y. So, 33, said he chanced upon TLC Cars in July, and decided to buy a brand new Toyota Harrier sport utility vehicle from it for $137,800. Since then, he has paid up just over $55,000 in deposits, but has yet to secure delivery of the car. After repeated assurances by the company and as many postponements, he filed a police report on Oct 27.
Asked why he decided to buy a car from a relatively unknown firm, Mr So said it was a “random” choice. “Its price seemed all right,” he said. “And it had newspaper clippings on its wall.” Asked how he felt about the prospect of not getting the car or his money back, Mr So said: “I’ll have to suck it up. There’s nothing much I can do.”
The Straits Times understands that at least 10 customers are affected by the TLC episode, while more than 20 have been affected by the Exodus Global case.
Individual consumers are not the only ones facing losses. Fellow motor company Auto Lease has also made a police report against TLC.
TLC, it said, bought a Honda Vezel from it for about $36,000 (before COE). TLC paid about $6,000, took delivery of the car, but has made no further payment.
Mr Anthony Lim, a partner in Auto Lease, added that his firm had also secured several certificates of entitlement (COEs) on TLC’s behalf.
Auto Lease was also affected by Exodus Global’s closure. In total, Mr Lim said Auto Lease had paid $310,000 in COE deposits on behalf of Exodus Global and TLC.
Mr Raymond Tang, first vice-president of the Singapore Vehicle Traders Association, said cases such as TLC’s are “not new”.
Indeed, the industry sees similar cases almost yearly. The biggest in recent years involved Volks Auto, which misappropriated some $4.6 million in deposits in 2014.
Mr Tang said consumers should patronise “respectable firms with long track records to be safe”. Even better, go to CaseTrust-accredited dealers, he said. “Most times, they get into trouble because they go for the lowest prices,” he said.
TLC managing director Timothy Gay was uncontactable for comment.
Source: The Straits Times
Starting from 2019, children with moderate to severe special needs will need to attend publicly-funded schools, just like all other children in Singapore.
The move to extend the Compulsory Education Act to this group of children will take effect from the Primary 1 cohort three years from now.
With the change, they will be required to attend any of the 20 government-funded special education (Sped) schools here, unless they apply for exemption.
Minister for Education (Schools) Ng Chee Meng announced the new policy on Friday morning (Nov 4) at the annual Sped conference, saying: “This is indeed an important milestone in Singapore’s continuing drive towards national inclusiveness.
“I am heartened to hear that nearly all children with special needs are receiving formal primary education in government-funded schools, either mainstream or Sped.”
He noted the progress made in the Sped sector in the areas of curriculum, teaching and learning, professional development for teachers and infrastructure.
“It is therefore timely to include our children with special educational needs within the framework established by the Compulsory Education Act. This is a reaffirmation that every child matters, regardless of his or her learning challenges,” he said.
The policy change comes nearly five years after it was recommended by a a 32-member, government-appointed expert panel. Experts have said that including special needs children in the Compulsory Education Act would compel parents who do not send their children to school – due to lack of awareness of opportunities, or fear of their children being seen in public – to do so.
It also guarantees to provide enough places for special needs children. Currently, some Sped schools have long waiting lists.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) has pledged that there will be enough school places for all Singaporean children.
A quarter – or about 440 – of the 1,770 children with special needs per cohort are currently exempt from the Compulsory Education Act, according to MOE figures. They have moderate to severe special needs, such as autism, intellectual disabilities and cerebral palsy.
Of this, about 40 children do not go to school.
The remaining three-quarters of the cohort – whose disabilities are mild, including conditions like dyslexia – are in mainstream primary schools.
The Compulsory Education Act passed in 2000 requires all Singaporean children to complete six years of primary education in national schools before they turn 15. Parents can be fined up to $5,000 and/or jailed for up to a year otherwise. Besides those with moderate to severe special needs, children attending designated religious schools or being homeschooled can be exempted.
Dr Janil Puthucheary, who is Minister of State for Education, will chair an advisory panel appointed by MOE to look into implementing the new policy.
“Over the years, MOE and various voluntary welfare organisations have worked closely to enhance the quality, accessibility and affordability of Sped. We have also implemented measures to strengthen support for children with special educational needs in mainstream schools,” said Dr Puthucheary.
“The advisory panel will have some work ahead, to make sure that we implement compulsory education in a way that serves the needs of all children, but with the community and the professionals coming together I’m sure we’ll be able to.”
Mr Ng said that his ministry is mindful of the challenges involved in implementing compulsory education for children with special needs, noting that there will be a small group of children with serious conditions who cannot attend school or whose parents may still prefer to teach their children at home.
“We will need to work out exemption processes for this group to ensure their interests and welfare are safeguarded. But the overall policy intent is clear, as is our determination to facilitate what will be in the best interests of our children.”
The welfare community lauded the move.
Dr Victor Tay, president of the Association for Persons with Special Needs, said that Singapore had signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1995, which states that every child has the right to education.
“Somehow we did not put it into effect fully, because perhaps the Sped sector was not prepared and was still building up its resources and curricula,” he said.
“But there has been more discussion about moving towards a more inclusive society in the last few years, and schools are more ready now for such a mandate.”
Today, there are a total of 18,000 students with mild special educational needs in mainstream schools, while another 5,500 with moderate and severe needs are supported by Sped schools.
These schools are provided substantial funding by MOE – significantly more than the mainstream schools – which goes towards paying specialised staff and providing tailored support for students.
In a Facebook post on Friday, Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin said that MOE’s plan to include children with Special educational needs in the Compulsory Education Act “is a huge step in making Singapore a more inclusive society”.
“The changes to the Compulsory Education Act support the recommendation in the Second Enabling Masterplan for more support in enabling children with special needs to access education in both mainstream and Sped schools. This will help children with special needs to realise their potential, and open up opportunities for continual learning, and employment,” he wrote.
He noted that MOE has been working closely with Sped schools over the past few years to improve the quality of education, affordability and accessibility for students. Support for children with special needs in mainstream schools has also been improved, so that they can learn and develop in a natural setting.
Mr Tan said the Ministry of Social and Family Development will be working with MOE and the new advisory panel to further build on efforts to enhance the learning opportunities for children with special needs, “so that they are better able to develop and build competencies”.
Source: The Straits Times
It was on a late July flight home to Singapore when Mr Anthony Tan grasped the enormity of news that his biggest ally, Didi Chuxing, was about to buy out arch-rival Uber’s Chinese business.
The stunned Grab co-founder knew better than to celebrate the vanquishing of an enemy. Unfettered by a costly battle for China, the world’s most valuable start-up would now pivot to his South-east Asian backyard. And with Didi and Uber Technologies taking stakes in each other, it spelt trouble for a global alliance forged to keep the US ride-hailing giant in check.
Distraught, he took to his laptop and spent the next hour hammering out a rallying cry (and warning) to his 1,500 employees. Sure enough, soon after the deal, his American rival began re-deploying resources and engineers to markets from India to Latin America, while rolling out new features and services from Singapore to Hanoi.
“There are times you just go: It’s time to rise up,” said Mr Tan, a 34-year-old who’s fond of quoting the Bible and likens Grab to David facing an Uber-Goliath. For Mr Tan, the climax of that Old Testament story wasn’t the battle itself but when “the little guy” walked down the battlefield towards his giant adversary. “That takes real courage”, the Malaysian-born chief executive officer added in his first major interview in a year.”The battle is already won if you can get to the battlefield.”
The mission statement penned at 30,000 feet was a rare display of emotion for a man whose ultra-competitiveness lurks just beneath an unflappable demeanour, according to friends. He responded to Uber’s deal by clinching US$750 million (S$1 billion) from investors led by SoftBank Group — a record for a South-east Asian tech start-up. That money will bankroll Mr Tan’s newest endeavour: GrabPay, a mobile payments service that could set it apart in a region where about 90 per cent of transactions take place with cash.
“Anthony hates losing,” said CEO of Vertext Ventures Chua Kee Lock, the venture arm of Singaporean state-owned investment company Temasek Holdings and Grab’s first institutional investor.
It’s unclear how the alliance between Grab, Didi, Lyft and India’s Ola will proceed. Ms Jean Liu, Didi’s president, told a summit in San Francisco the company is a “big believer” in leveraging the knowledge and strengths of local players. Her company is said to have been in talks to join Grab’s last round of funding, though that investment never got nailed down even as other backers were announced. No one’s suggesting the quartet is breaking up and Mr Tan said the four founders remain close and still share information, but had no immediate plans to hook up their networks.
“We’re not launching any time soon,” Mr Tan said of global roaming. “Frankly, for us, we are just focused on our local stuff.”
Grab will take on Uber solo if needed. It’s already dispatched a clutch of rivals en route to expanding across 31 cities in six countries since its 2012 inception in a Kuala Lumpur warehouse. Uber is active in just 16 South-east Asian cities. According to App Annie, Grab topped app downloads in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam in the third quarter. Uber led in Singapore and Malaysia, Grab’s home turf.
“We’ve charted our journey to be alone,” Tan said. “Didi did whatever it takes to win. In our case, we will do whatever it takes to win.”
Problem is, he’s now facing a US$69 billion behemoth that’s raised over US$16 billion to date. Grab, in contrast, is said to be worth little more than US$3 billion after raising a cumulative US$1.45 billion. “Uber is growing strongly and sustainably across Southeast-Asia, which is a major focus for the company,” Uber said in an e-mail to Bloomberg.
Mr Tan, whose great-grandfather was a taxi driver, got the inspiration to start Grab during his days at Harvard Business School. He quit the family business in Malaysia, Tan Chong Motor Holdings in 2012 and started a taxi-hailing service then known as MyTeksi with his Harvard classmate Ms Tan Hooi Ling.
On a recent afternoon at Grab’s Singapore offices, Mr Tan talked about his vision and the hectic pace he sustains. Constant travel has taken a toll: Perched on a silver gym ball to ease the pressure on his back, his fingers were covered with blisters from hand-foot-and-mouth disease, a viral infection.
Yet he grows energised when talking about Grab’s future. Mr Tan’s priority now is building GrabPay into a regional mobile wallet and payments service to hook users and drivers without credit cards. “We really believe that GrabPay will change the game.”
This year, it teamed up with Ant Financial to allow Chinese travellers visiting Singapore and Thailand to pay for rides through Alipay. Customers can now hook up their Citibank credit cards to GrabPay to pay for rides with points. In Indonesia, it partnered with PT Bank Mandiri to offer a mobile wallet service, and it struck an agreement with Lippo Group to let shoppers use its app to pay at the conglomerate’s department stores, cinemas and coffee shops. All that’s intended to further Grab’s ambition of becoming a consumer Internet company that just happens to offer rides. ”We are creating the BAT of South-east Asia,” Mr Tan said, referring to China’s triumvirate of Baidu Holdings, Alibaba Group, and Tencent Holdings. “The next generation of great Internet companies in Southeast-Asia will come from Grab if we get it right.”
Mr Tan isn’t the only one gambling against Uber: His backers include state investment firms Temasek and China Investment Corporation, as well as Tiger Global Management. The grandson of Mr Tan Yuet Foh, who co-founded an auto sales-and-assembly empire, is driven by a desire to forge his own legacy. Mr Jixun Foo, managing partner at backer GGV Capital, recalled how Mr Tan once took responsibility for a poor hiring decision he had little to do with.
“You could always blame someone, but he took it on himself,” said Mr Foo, who sits on the board. “And he has a very strong desire to prove himself.”
For now, Grab is fighting it out in a South-east Asian ride-hailing market with some 620 million people, forecast to grow more than five times to US$13 billion by 2025. But it’s been a topsy-turvy journey, replete with stunners like Uber’s capitulation.
“It’s like Korean drama,” Mr Tan joked, invoking a genre known for its twists and turns and themes of revenge, betrayal and power. Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma put it best during a recent conversation, he said.
“He said, ‘You know Anthony, life is a tsunami. When you’re up on a tsunami, get ready for the crash. When you are at the bottom, get ready for the next wave’.”
Source: TODAY Online