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Another Escalator Incident In PRC Leaves Parents On Edge

Shortly after the fatal accident which saw a young mother being “swallowed” up by a revolving escalator in a PRC mall, another report of a chilling incident involving escalators in Guangxi Province has emerged.

According to local media reports, a 1 year-old toddler had gotten his left arm trapped in the grooves of an escalator at a mall. He was riding the escalator with his mother when the incident took place on Monday at about 10AM.

A distress call was sent out and local rescue workers were dispatched to the scene. They found the boy crying in excruciating pain and his mother in shock and a state of panic.

Rescue workers used hydraulic equipment to pry open the escalator steps and freed the boy within 5 minutes. However, according to eye witnesses, the boy’s left arm was “basically destroyed”.

Local PRC authorities are investigating the case.

Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

July 29, 2015
I Don’t Like My Cabinet

It is so difficult to find a good cabinet nowadays.

The cabinet I now have is full of termites. Apparently it is made of plywood.. Despite looking stylish and sharp, when knocked, it sounds hollow. It sounds like a tin kosong.

I tried getting them renovated and visited a store called GE13. They offered various custom made compartments and were made of different types of wood. There were many options for the cabinet doors ─ metal, composite, laminate, and thermofoil. All good options, to be honest. I decided to give it a try and placed my order.

But for some reason, the order never came through. Maybe someone offered a better price for it. Sigh.

The truth is, they don’t make cabinets like they used to anymore like the cabinets we had back in my kampong. They were all made by my dad. He singlehandedly picked and chose every part of the cabinet. The workmanship was rough since dad was merely a hobby carpenter but he knew how to pick the woods and make the edges meet.

We’ve had those cabinets for more than 40 years now. The red meranti still stands firmly on my mom’s kitchen walls – slightly worn, but well kept. Even the paint is in good condition. And no matter how hard my crazy rough brother bangs the doors shut, not a single splinter comes off. The only thing that gets broken every now and then are the made in china door hinges.

But then again, the cabinets were made by a mamak – which explains its durability.

The truth is, when it comes to kitchen cabinets, you get what you pay for. There is the cheap plywood kind teeming with insects (like the one I have in my kitchen) of low durability but surprisingly sturdy and good looking.

Then you have laminates which are basically a thin layer of solid wood over an inner core of chipboard. The wood covering is deceiving, misleading and in the end the chipboard doesn’t last that long.

I don’t want that type of cabinets anymore. I need something solid. Something durable. Something with quality.

Seriously, I need to change the cabinets in my home. The IKEA ones look nice – quite pricey though, but nice nevertheless. However, I wonder if it can fulfil the real purpose of a cabinet.

You see, what I do know is that peddlers at furniture malls who want to sell me cabinets, try to distract me so that I forget the real function of a cabinet. Cabinets must serve a purpose and I know getting the wrong one means that the purpose is not achieved. On top of that you are left with a heck of a lot of trouble.

And I also know that a homeowner who keeps changing cabinets just for show should not be trusted completely. I mean, why would a homeowner change his/her cabinet(s) around Syawal? What is he/she trying to accomplish? Is he/she hiding some deep rot by refurbishing it with some good looking chipboard cabinet with an oak overlay?

Like I said, I hate my cabinet. Besides the termites eating away at the wood I paid for, I hate the fact that some of the doors which are made of dark shaded wood keep dark secrets. And I also hate that the old drawers in the cabinets don’t slide in easily. I think drawers should never fight with their master.

To be honest, I don’t think any amount of renovation or refurbishing or reshuffling can cover the unpleasantness of having this cabinet in my kitchen. It just needs to go. All of it.

I would really like to replace it with a nice, new, gleaming cabinet. Maybe one with transparent sides or a transparent glass door. One that will let some sun in so that everyone can see that it is not messy on the inside.

I want a cabinet with doors that don’t creak loudly every time they’re opened or shut.

I want a cabinet that doesn’t store candies and cookies in its’ recesses….hidden away from the kids.

And I want a cabinet with classy, durable, functional containers – not one screaming with red Tupperware and cheap plastic containers in pastel colours.

I guess I should start shopping for a good cabinet before it’s too late. As of now, one side of my cabinet is full of termites and the other side is also corrupted from absorbing too much water and dampness that didn’t belong in the cabinet in the first place.

Hopefully by 2018, I will get my cabinet replaced. Maybe with a meranti, maybe a jati. But definitely never a plywood or a chipboard ever again. I know it won’t be easy – good wood is hard to come by despite living in a tropical climate.

But then again, we must be willing to put in the effort if we want to enjoy having a good quality cabinet in the house.

Source: www.freemalaysiatoday.

July 29, 2015
Court: Headless Woman Killed By Husband

Upset that his wife was making a long-distance call to a mystery party, he reportedly punched her in a fight and left her lying on the bed.

It was only later, he told a friend, that he realised that she was not unconscious, but dead. That was when he decided to get rid of the body.

A coroner’s court found yesterday that Indian national Jasvinder Kaur, 33, had been murdered by her husband, Harvinder Singh, 35, on Dec 11, 2013.

Ms Kaur’s headless body was discovered floating in Whampoa River on the morning of Dec 12. Her corpse was wrapped in black trash bags, with the legs exposed and hands severed at the wrists.

Harvinder, a senior logistics coordinator, remains on the run. His friend, fellow Indian national Gursharan Singh, 27, was jailed for 30 months in April for helping to get rid of Ms Kaur’s body.

Gursharan, a forklift driver, had helped Harvinder carry a luggage bag from the latter’s residence at 228A Balestier Road to the canal near McNair Road.

When Gursharan grew suspicious at how heavy the bag was, he demanded to know what was in it. Harvinder then explained that he had fought that morning with Ms Kaur and punched her once on the neck.

He said she had fallen onto the bed and he had left her there. When he found her in the same position later, he realised she was dead and decided to dispose of her body.

Although Gursharan was then aware that the luggage contained a corpse, he helped Harvinder carry it to the canal. Harvinder then told him to walk away. As Gursharan left, he heard a splash.

Ms Kaur’s employer told investigators that after the deceased failed to turn up for work as a beautician on Dec 11, Harvinder called to say she was returning to India.

Harvinder fled the next morning to Malaysia, and then to India, where the authorities were unable to trace him. He is now on Interpol’s wanted list.

The exact cause of Ms Kaur’s death remains unknown as her head and hands were never found.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

July 29, 2015
Despite 1MDB Woes, Najib Now Unassailable After The Cabinet Purge

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 ― With the strategic removal of potential challengers from within his Cabinet, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is likely to remain prime minister until the next election despite his troubles with debt-riddled 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), political observers said.

With a specific reference to his deputy in government as well as in Umno, Tan Sri Muhyiddin, the analysts said the prime minister has effectively neutralised dissent within his party at the risk of enlarging the rift between the camps of both leaders.

“Najib will stay as PM, what he has done is standard textbook on political survival, a carrot-and-stick approach where you get rid of your detractors and reward your loyalists,” Universiti Malaysia Sarawak political scientist Dr Faisal Hazis told Malay Mail Online when contacted yesterday.

“Najib is flexing his muscles, this move will consolidate and strengthen his position.

“I don’t see how Muhyiddin can unseat Najib, or anyone else. Najib’s actions are in line with Umno’s culture of patronage (and) sends a strong message to critics to not mess with him,” Faizal added.

Merdeka Center director Ibrahim Suffian said Muhyiddin could have challenged Najib while he was still deputy prime minister, but likely did not have enough backing to make a move.

“I am not sure that Muhyiddin has the support to muster a serious challenge towards Najib. If he did, he would have already made his move,” he told Malay Mail Online.

Such an overt move by Najib, however, will likely lead to a clash between Najib and Muhyiddin, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia political analyst Prof Shamsul Adabi Mamat said.

Shamsul stressed that what Najib did was necessary to keep his ministers in line and to send a strong message that they should not criticise him publicly.

“But the controntation between Najib and Muhyiddin will be unavoidable. It depends on Muhyiddin’s next move on whether he wants to challenge Najib.

“But I predict camps from both sides will clash,” he said.

Professor Shaharuddin Badaruddin of Universiti Selangor believes that Muhyiddin does not have enough influence or support within Umno to mount a credible challenge against Najib.

“As for what can Muhyiddin do, I think he does not have any strength since he’s only a regular MP.

“He can move a motion of no confidence against the Cabinet but he would need the support of all Umno MPs first. Given the culture of political patronage in the party, I do not see this happening,” he told Malay Mail Online.

“Remember that the culling is meant as a warning to all Umno leaders at all levels to tow the line or face the consequences,” the academic added.

In a hastily called news conference held in Putrajaya yesterday, Najib announced that Muhyiddin was dropped from all Cabinet posts ostensibly for publicly questioning the prime minister’s alleged links to the 1MDB financial scandal.

Muhyiddin had during the weekend urged Najib to satisfactorily explain the 1MDB controversy, claiming that he and other ministers were unaware of the “real facts”.

This resulted in a rare public rebuke from the Prime Minister’s Office Monday, which urged Muhyiddin and other members of the administration not to pre-judge the ongoing investigations on 1MDB.

Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com

July 29, 2015
Inderjit Singh Says He Is Still PAP Member

Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Inderjit Singh has taken to social media to affirm that he is still a member of the People’s Action Party. He also said he will still be assisting PM Lee Hsien Loong in his election campaign in Ang Mo Kio.

His latest post on Tuesday came after he announced his retirement from politics at the next election. His announcement about his retirement on Facebook came shortly after the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee released its report on boundary changes.

Online talk by netizens and news websites was set abuzz with speculation that Mr Inderjit was quitting the party.

Some websites and commentators reposted his old speeches on the White Paper that was made in Parliament, and a social media post in response to the President’s address.

Reacting to the online buzz, Mr Inderjit said on his Facebook page: “I read with amusement that some people have taken my old speeches and reposted them with a headline that I have left the PAP. The white paper speech was made in early 2013 and the one on the response to the president address was posted in May 2014.

“I requested to PM to allow me to step down as an MP on 2nd January 2013 as I have contributed almost 20 years as an MP and wanted to spend time on my work and family.”

I read with amusement that some people have taken my old speeches and reposted them with a headline that I have left the…

Posted by Inderjit Singh on Tuesday, July 28, 2015

On Sunday, Singapore’s Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen told the media in an interview: “We want to handle the retirement of our MPs more smoothly and I would prefer a more deliberate and a dignified manner,” he said. “You can post your retirement on Facebook, but I think as an MP who has served 15, 20, even 30 years – that’s not the best way to do it.”

Many online took it to understand that Mr Inderjit was retiring from the party, as there were no other MPs who have announced their retirement.

When asked to comment, The Straits Times reported that Mr Singh replied: “If there was infighting, would I be helping PM Lee with his campaign?”

Dr Ng also told The Straits Times separately: “When I read that Inderjit was retiring, two thoughts came into my mind. First, that at 55, he had many more years to contribute, and was big-hearted to retire now, so that younger candidates could stand in his place.

“I have great respect for Inderjit and learnt from his many good speeches in Parliament. He has a heart for the daily struggles of Singaporeans and could put it across in heartfelt and effective ways. When he spoke, Ministers took note, and followed up. He was a people’s MP.

“Second, I thought we should do better than just Facebook postings for retiring MPs. After many years of service, the party should try to find a more dignified and deliberate way to announce their retirement. So when we announce new candidates, whenever possible, we will do it together with their retiring MPs, that they are taking over. I hope this approach will do justice to the many years of contribution that MPs like Inderjit have given to serve their residents.”

Source: http://news.asiaone.com

July 29, 2015