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Fair Or Unfair?: Some Public Officers In Civil Service Can Get Extra Day Off In Celebration Of NS50

Some public servants will be receiving an extra day off this year to mark 50 years of National Service (NS50) in the Republic.

The day off, which has to be taken between Aug 1 and Dec 31 this year, is meant for employees who have served as full-time National Servicemen or uniformed regulars in the Singapore Armed Forces and the Home Team, according to one statutory board.

Rumours of the extra day off for public servants first surfaced on online forum hardwarezone late last week, with users asking if it was true.

Checks by TODAY revealed that employees of some statutory boards have received an internal memo or email from their Human Resources department earlier this month.

But it seems the benefit may not be rolled out to all public officers as employees at some other ministries and statutory boards said they have yet to receive word of the extra day off.

In an internal memo seen by TODAY, the day off was declared by the staff member’s employer “in support of the Ministry of Defence’s NS50 initiatives”.

TODAY has written to the Ministry of Defence and the Public Service Division for more information.

This year, Singapore marks 50 years of National Service, and as part of the celebration, a year-long series of events and initiatives have been rolled out to commemorate the milestone.

Among the perks given to all past and present national servicemen this year are S$100 worth of NS50 vouchers, which they can use at a wide range of retail and food and beverage outlets. Those currently in service, or have completely their operationally ready NS are also given an additional one-year membership at either Safra or HomeTeamNS.

Source: http://www.todayonline.com

August 17, 2017
Sultan Kedah Gesa Bakal Jemaah Haji Berdisiplin; Jangan Jejaskan Imej Negara & Hubungan Dengan Arab Saudi

Sultan Kedah Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah meminta lebih 4,000 bakal jemaah haji dari negeri itu supaya menjaga nama baik negara sepanjang tempoh berada di Tanah Suci.

Beliau berkata jemaah perlu menjaga adab dan mengelak sebarang perbalahan ketika berada di sana demi menjaga hubungan negara dengan Arab Saudi.

“Jemaah haji negara diiktiraf sebagai jemaah yang berdisiplin dan sebab itu, patuhillah arahan pihak berkuasa di sana. Jangan terbabit dalam sebarang kegiatan haram ketika di sana.

“Sekiranya berlaku, ia nanti menjejaskan imej negara dan hubungan dengan negara Arab Saudi,” ujarnya di majlis Mengucapkan Selamat Jalan Kepada Bakal Jemaah Haji Kedah malam semalam (16 Ogos).

Seramai 4,564 jemaah haji dari Kedah dan Perlis akan menunaikan rukun Islam kelima itu pada musim haji kali ini.

Sultan Kedah juga menasihatkan bakal jemaah haji supaya memberikan tumpuan sepenuhnya dalam mengerjakan ibadat tersebut.

“Beta mengharapkan jemaah haji meningkatkan amal ibadat dan dapat melaksanakan rukun wajib haji serta menjaga akhlak yang baik untuk mendapatkan haji yang mabrur,” katanya sambil meminta mereka menjaga kesihatan kerana cuaca yang panas di Tanah Suci.

Pada majlis itu, Raja Muda Kedah turut beramah mesra dengan 287 bakal jemaah haji yang akan berlepas terus ke Makkah pada 3.30 pagi tadi melalui Lapangan Terbang Sultan Abdul Halim.

Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg

August 17, 2017
72-Year-Old Ferrari Driver Found Guilty Of Punching Face Of BMW Driver

A district court has found Ferrari driver Shi Ka Yee, 72, guilty of assaulting a fellow motorist in 2014.

Following a two-day trial, District Judge Chay Yuen Fatt convicted her on Thursday (Aug 17) of hurting Mr Raphael Chong Yen Ping by punching his face along Telok Ayer Street at around 5pm on Feb 25, 2014.

He suffered a cut above his right eyebrow.

On the first day of the trial on June 5, this year, Mr Chong, 39, testified that he was in his BMW and waiting for a parking space along the one-way road when Shi drove by in her red Ferrari.

Mr Chong said Shi started to shout and sounded her horn as she wanted him to move his car.

He told District Judge Chay that he stayed put as the road was wide enough for other vehicles to pass through easily.

He added that Shi became very upset and launched into “verbal diarrhoea” against him.

Mr Chong said she got out of her car to snap pictures of him, holding up traffic as there were other vehicles behind them.

He then told her: “Don’t know how to drive, don’t drive a Ferrari.”

Mr Chong said Shi then moved towards his car and punched him on the right side of his forehead through an open window.

The court heard that she was wearing rings on her fingers and the blow caused a cut on Mr Chong’s forehead. He called the police after she drove away.

An advertising agency executive director, Mr Stephen Choy Ying Whye, who also took the stand on June 5, said he was in another car nearby when he saw Shi stepping out of her car. When cross-examined by Shi’s lawyer, Mr Irving Choh, Mr Choy also testified that Mr Chong had not uttered any vulgarities to her.

Shi took the stand on June 29 and admitted that she had assaulted Mr Chong.

However, she said her behaviour was justified as he had abused her with vulgar language. She also testified that she had not punched, but slapped him.

She added: “I was very stunned, shocked and humiliated… He was not a respectable gentleman. My instinct was to give him a slap, (and) I did.”

She is now on bail. Her mitigation and sentencing will be held at a later date.

Besides causing hurt, Shi has six other charges against her which will be dealt with at a later date.

She was in the news last year over a case involving a rain tree on her Astrid Hill property, near Holland Road. Its branches were encroaching into her neighbour’s front yard and the judge ordered her to trim them and pay the neighbour damages.

Four of the charges against her that have been stood down for now relate to the Astrid Hill rain tree incident, including one count each of criminal trespass and committing a rash act.

The other two charges relate to an incident on June 29 last year, when Shi allegedly stopped her car between the third and fourth lanes of Orchard Road, just after the Claymore Road junction, causing an obstruction there.

Offenders convicted of assault can be jailed up to two years and fined up to $5,000.

Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/

August 17, 2017
Indian Man Says His Xiaomi Smartphone Burst Into Flames Inside His Pocket

An Indian man claims that while he was riding his bike on Sunday, his Xiaomi smartphone suddenly exploded into flames inside his pocket.

Bhavana Suryakiran, the former owner of a Redmi Note, told the local Sakshi Post that because of the intense heat and flames he wasn’t able to pull his pants off until helpful onlookers arrived with a bucket of water. Even after being doused, Suryakiran says that the phone was still smoking and on fire.

The incident, which occurred in Ravulapalem in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, left Suryakiran with some nasty burns on his thigh. He said that he had bought the phone only 20 days before through Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart, adding that he planned to sue the company for compensation.

Xiaomi is one of China’s biggest business success stories, growing into the world’s largest smartphone startup in a matter of years, besting Apple in its home country while also expanding abroad, particularly to India where the company’s CEO gave an infamous speech in Chinglish in 2015.

During its rise to success, Xiaomi has been known to take ideas liberally from its competitors. When it launched its Redmi Note, the company was accused of stealing the name from the popular Samsung Galaxy Note. It now appears that they may have been inspired by the phone’s combustibility as well.

Xiaomi has acknowledged the incident, explaining that they are trying to get in contact with Suryakiran to get to the bottom of the matter. “We take such matters seriously as customer safety is of utmost importance for Xiaomi. All of our devices go through stringent quality tests,” a company spokesperson said.

Source: http://shanghaiist.com

August 17, 2017
Myanmar Football Team Rewarded $68,000 For Victory Over Singapore

The Myanmar Under-22 football team have been rewarded handsomely for their 2-0 victory over Singapore on Monday.

It is understood that the team received a US$50,000 (S$68,250) bonus after winning their SEA Games opener.

Facebook page Thai Futbol carried a picture of the team being handed a brown envelope supposedly containing US$30,000.

According to sources, the US$30,000 came from KBZ Bank, while Myanmar Football Federation president U Zaw Zaw and former Yangon United chairman U Tay Za contributed US$10,000 each.

Former Singapore national coach P N Sivaji, who is now technical director of Myanmar National League side Hanthawaddy United, told The New Paper that such gestures are not uncommon.

He said: “There are quite a few patrons and well-wishers who have shown great willingness to support and reward the team.”

While Myanmar Under-22 coach Gerd Zeise has set an initial target of reaching the semi-finals, expectations are high as they have eight players who featured in the 2015 Under-20 World Cup and also won a silver medal at the last SEA Games.

They got off to a good start in Kuala Lumpur as Aung Thu’s goals either side of half-time were enough to seal three points in a group that also comprises hosts Malaysia, Laos and Brunei.

TNP understands that the Young Lions were offered $2,000 each to beat Myanmar on Monday, and that figure could increase for tonight’s do-or-die game against Malaysia in which they have to get at least a point to keep their semi-final hopes alive.

Elsewhere, the Sultan of Johor gave RM4million (S$1.27m) to the Football Association of Malaysia after their Under-22 side qualified for the AFC U-23 Championship for the first time last month.

The players were initially promised RM6,000 each for their efforts but can now look forward to a bigger payday.

Source: http://www.tnp.sg/

August 17, 2017