Blog

SMRT And OMGTEL To Cooperate On Bid For Singapore’s Fourth Wireless Telco Carrier Licence

Transport operator SMRT has announced that it has entered an agreement with OMGTEL (OMG) to work exclusively with OMG in connection with OMG’s bid for Singapore’s fourth wireless telecommunications (telco) carrier licence.

OMG is a company incorporated by local tech firm Consistel on Oct 20, 2014, for the purpose of bidding for the telco licence. It had originally announced its intentions to be the Republic’s fourth telco in October.

Under the announcement posted on the Singapore Exchange on Wednesday (Apr 15), SMRT and OMG will collaborate on the provision of goods and services, and will seek to leverage SMRT’s extensive media presence and commuter reach.

“The above transaction is not expected to have a material impact on the company’s financial performance for the financial year ending Mar 31, 2016,” SMRT said.

The transport operator also announced that it was offered an opportunity to invest up to S$34.5 million via an option to subscribe for shares in OMG. The exercise of the option will be at SMRT’s election, and subject to OMG obtaining the telco licence, satisfactory due diligence on OMG, and the execution of definitive agreements between SMRT and OMG, among others, it said.

“OMGTEL believes SMRT will make a significant and strategic contribution to making OMGTEL a success in the years to come,” said OMGTEL chairman Masoud Bassiri in a statement on Wednesday.

In preparation for the bid, OMG said it has appointed an advisory board, which includes former Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo, former Commissioner of the Singapore Police Force Khoo Boon Hui, as well as former deputy CEO of the Media Development Authority Michael Yap.

The company also announced that in addition to its tie-up with SMRT, it has also entered into a mobile backhaul services agreement with SP Telecommunications, which it said, offers “established optical networks”.

“OMGTEL will be a true Singaporean alliance to be of service to all Singaporeans for many years to come,” said Mr Masoud. “It will build a cutting edge telecommunications network and provide exceptional service to its members, building on many years of knowledge and expertise acquired in Singapore as well as in other countries.

“OMGTEL is in discussions with potential shareholders, private and institutional, and other strategic partners, including technology experts and infrastructure funding providers.” Mr Masoud said OMG expects IDA to announce licence bid conditions in the near future.

OMG-SMRT VS MYREPUBLIC

Forrester Research analyst Clement Teo said he thinks the OMG-SMRT partnership stands an equal chance of getting a licence, as broadband provider MyRepublic, which first announced its intentions to occupy the fourth telco spot last June.

“Neither side has ever built a full telco network, so in terms of experience, they are both almost zero,” he said. “OMG will probably get access to the train tunnels, and that might give them better coverage. But right now, it is everybody’s game. It all depends on who can handle the challenges of the industry – such as pricing, talent and IDA’s expectations – better.”

But he said more details on the bid are needed to assess its merits. “We don’t yet understand the arrangement – who owns the network, and who builds it?

“If everything is in order and they have already established the foundation, including the size of market capture, how are they planning to differentiate themselves? If they are going to be the cheapest, well, price doesn’t move a lot of people – they will need to have value-add.”

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

April 16, 2015
Former RGS Student Sues School For Failing To Protect Her From Bullying

A former student is suing Raffles Girls’ School (RGS), claiming that the school failed to protect her from being bullied and she was forced to study overseas.

Ms Cheryl Tan, now 18, wants RGS to pay not just for her pain and suffering, but also the $220,000 it cost to continue her studies at the prestigious Wells Cathedral School in England. She is currently completing her A levels there, said her mother, Madam Ng Wee Ching.

A spokesman for RGS, which is denying the claims, told The Straits Times yesterday that the school and its teachers “have always acted in the best interests of its students”, and ensured their health and safety within the school.

The case revolves around how Ms Tan fell out with fellow members of the school’s Chinese Orchestra in Secondary 3 in 2012.

That year, she was appointed secretary of the co-curricular activity (CCA). According to the suit, she was told by teachers that she would double as a student conductor, along with another student. This allegedly antagonised other CCA members, particularly its student executive committee (exco), which “ostracised and bullied” her at various points over 12 months from July 2012.

According to the suit, Ms Tan was seen as being “selfish” and “greedy” for taking up two positions.

Ms Tan, who joined RGS through the Music Elective Programme, claims that she was repeatedly badgered during practice by a particular student. She says she was also criticised online for bringing up the matter to staff.

She and her parents repeatedly informed the school about the bullying, according to the suit, but the abuse persisted and she left the orchestra in March 2013. She withdrew from the school at the end of July.

It is also claimed that the repeated bullying caused her eczema to worsen and skin on her hand to crack, affecting her ability to play instruments. She needed treatment at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital.

In RGS’ defence filed with the High Court, its lawyer, Senior Counsel Thio Shen Yi, has described the claims as frivolous.

It was pointed out that school policy defines bullying as involving “hurting, frightening or intimidating others using power of strength” while cyber bullying includes the sending of hateful messages.

The school found no instance of bullying after investigating Ms Tan’s complaints. The defence papers pointed out that RGS staff had frequently engaged Ms Tan’s parents over their concerns.

The defence also claims that Ms Tan had wanted all along to study overseas and had taken active steps towards this even before the supposed bullying.

Ms Tan, it was pointed out, was never told she was going to be a student conductor. Instead, she was chosen to attend a conducting course with another student. The CCA’s teachers-in- charge were considering the possibility of having two student conductors to cope with a larger number of events in 2013.

The CCA’s student exco was not told of this however, and on its own, voted for the other student. Ms Tan found out about this and it led to her parents becoming involved. According to the defence, some students in the exco then ended up feeling that the school was only considering a second conductor to give in to Ms Tan’s demands.

A High Court pre-trial conference is due today.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

April 16, 2015
Ho Ching Assures All That She Is Well

Thanks, friends, esp for the various PMs of support, encouragement and concern.

Just to let you know not to worry as I’m well.

Now is as good a time as any to spend some time on a couple of long standing things which I have wanted to do.

Good team in Temasek. Joked with them that I’m testing out what a sabbatical means.

Also to catch up on some sleep too! And do a lot more walking.

Thanks again and you all take care too!

Goodnite!

Source: Ho Ching

April 16, 2015
Hindu Party Shiv Sena Expressed Concerns Over Burgeoning Muslim Population, Suggests Better Family Planning And Ban On Burqa

Two days after the Shiv Sena advocated scrapping the voting rights of Muslims, the party on Wednesday said there should be proper family planning in the community, expressing concerns that the Muslim population in India will soon be higher than Pakistan or Indonesia.

In an editorial in the party’s mouthpiece Saamna, Shiv Sena parliamentarian Sanjay Raut said that the rising population of Muslims as compared to the falling population of Hindus in India will disturb the Hindu nation’s cultural and social balance.

“There’s a threat to the country’s Hindus due to the rising population of Muslims and Christians in India,” the MP said in the editorial, adding though the term “vasectomy” could be incorrect, family planning and population is very much a problem.

The editorial said that the state of the country is such that one can’t say a word even against stray dogs, who cannot be neutered by compulsion, due to excessive importance given to sympathy and human rights.

“If Mr. Owaisi saheb cares so much about the development of his community, he should promote family planning and ban the burkha for women,” the editorial said, adding its argument is actually in favour of the Muslims who would be able to raise their children better with limited resources in a small family.

“We are wasting our time in a silly argument of vasectomy or family planning. If Muslim leaders can’t manage anything else, they should at least save the nation by a vasectomy of their own communal thoughts,” the party said.

Earlier this week, the Shiv Sena had drawn much ire from across political parties when it said the voting rights of Muslims should be revoked as the community is often used for vote bank politics. Targeting the All India Majlis-Ittehadul Muslimeen, led by the Owaisi brothers, the party said that the brothers were like poisonous snakes who spew venom to exploit the minority community.

Source: http://indianexpress.com

April 16, 2015
Lee Hsien Loong: Racial Harmony Here An Unusual And Unnatural State Of Affairs, Need To Be Worked On Continuously

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Singaporeans of all races and religions are able to live peacefully side by side despite the fact that the country’s racial and religious harmony is an “unusual and unnatural state of affairs”.

Mr Lee spoke at a Harmony Dinner at the Singapore Expo on Wednesday evening (Apr 15), an event organised by the Taoist Federation to celebrate its Silver Jubilee.

“There are studies of different societies and there was one study called a report on ‘Global Religious Diversity’ looking at how mixed different societies were – and in fact they ranked Singapore as the most religious diverse society out of 232 countries in the world, and we were the most religiously diverse,” said Mr Lee.

“The most different religions, the most intermingled, all the world’s major faiths are present in Singapore and many smaller faiths too. And yet we enjoy racial and religious harmony, and we live peacefully and happily side by side every day,” added the Prime Minister. It is something that should be continually worked on to be preserved, he said.

Mr Lee said building a multi-racial and multi-religious society is a key ideal that Singapore was founded upon.

Quoting the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, the Prime Minister said Singapore does not belong to any single community, but to everyone. Mr Lee said the Taoist Federation worked hard to foster good relations between the different religious groups in Singapore.

All 10 constituent religions of the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) were also present at the Harmony Dinner, and Mr Lee called on the religious leaders to lead by example.

Said Mr Lee: “Your communities look to you as role models. How you counsel and lead your congregations, your flocks, will shape religious relations in Singapore. So I am very happy that so many of our religious leaders are committed to building trust and friendships with other communities.”

“We also of course need to keep our society open and inclusive. We can be any race, any religion, but we are also – at the same time – all Singaporeans together. And we have learnt to trust and respect our different races and religions, and to live peacefully with one another,” he said.

The IRO said racial and religious harmony is also enhanced by having more dialogues between people of various faiths.

“It is educating everyone as to what another religion has and if you have better understanding of another religion besides your own, that’s when you have a better understanding and that’s where you will have peace and harmony,” said IRO President Gurmit Singh.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

April 16, 2015