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Commentary: Comfort Taxi Driver Went Above And Beyond, A Crybaby Moment For Me

Today I was shown kindness by a Comfort taxi driver – Mr Yeo Choon Hwa.

I had to report for my flight at 730am.
I booked a taxi and when I got into the cab, I told the Uncle (yes we call any elderly male stranger Uncle in Singapore) to ‘please rush for me?’

Which is highly unfair because now I am partly making it his responsibility to get me to work in time… but I was that desperate.

Halfway through the journey – I started reaching out for my wallet so that I can quickly pay him and get out.

As the search got more frantic, I realised the worst. I forgot my wallet. I couldn’t believe it. I was now 12 minutes away from the airport. There was NO WAY out. Turning back will mean a day of havoc for me.

Resigning to my fate, I came clean with Uncle.
I told him I forgot my wallet and I wouldn’t be able to pay him at the end of this journey.
He looked up at me through the rear view and gave the most stunning reaction.

He smiled. Kindly. And then asked me what I would like to do. What I would like to do!? This was his taxi, his rice bowl and he had every right to tell me to get out from his taxi or turn back – but yes – he asked me what I would like to do.

So I told him, that if he is ok – I’ll take down his details and do a bank transfer when I touch down.
And without skipping a beat, he agreed.

I got to the airport just in time. Uncle even came out and helped me with my bags and just before I dashed off – he asked me if I had enough money for my travels and if I needed some.

Yeah. Crybaby moment for me. Still is.
Even after transferring the amount + bonus, I don’t think any amount can ever repay what he did.

Apart from his compassion and kindness, he completely left it to his faith in humanity that I will not go back on my word.
And I can’t help but think, what a lot of faith that must be.

Here’s to all our Taxi Uncles. ❤️❤️❤️

#TaxiUncleFTW #SHD4927J

Source: Noor Mastura

July 7, 2017
Awesome Movers Company Replaced A Scratched Samsung TV After They Said That They Would

#tanyakakina

I must do a special mention for this amazing person.

I moved house last week, msg few movers who turned me down cos its hari raya week. This one agreed to do.

During the shift, he has almost 10staff and all locals who understood what to be done and carried my stuff carefully, all wrapped or dismantled n to be fixed back at the new place.

That was not the highlight. At the new place he drilled the wall to fix back my tv. Then they realised my tv had a hairline crack. It was a new 65inch samsung n upon hearing that, tears rolled down my cheeks. He admitted his mistake n promised to buy me a new tv. Waaaaat! Jangan bedek lah! So says my inner voice. 3days later he came back with a new tv, exactly the one i had. This is one hell of a businessman, who took a lot of pride in running an honest business. I was so amazed that he didnt run away with empty promises. My prev mover lost my wedding photo and didnt answer my calls or refund me. So i am really thankful this time, there is an honest mover to deal with.

For the type of work he does, n the guarantee that he gives, i paid a mere $500 for the whole shifting. He refunded me with a tv worth more than $5k.

Hope more people will support him and his men who worked so hard. I thank zul and his team from the bottom of my heart.

Think movers. Think Budget Moverz.

#budgetmoverZ
Muhd Ardy

Source: Ina Sultan

July 7, 2017
CEO Of A&W Says Outlets In Singapore Will Be Halal-Certified To Cater To Muslims

After confirming the return of the A&W fast food chain to Singapore in 2018, Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore followed up with President and CEO Kevin Bazner to share more details about the comeback, including the source of supplies, possible Halal certifications and why it took 15 years to return.

“Our beef patties will be 100% sourced from Australia. Our fresh chicken supply will predominantly be sourced in the region and prepared locally. Other ingredients, where possible, will be sourced locally,” said Bazner in an email on Friday (7 July).

When asked if outlets in Singapore will be Halal-certified to cater to Muslims in the country, he said, “Yes, absolutely.”

Bazner was in charge of A&W’s international division back in 1988, during which he lived in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with his family for seven years. The American company was acquired by Yum! Brands in 2003, the same year all Singapore outlets were shut.

More than 10 years later, A&W is set to return to the foodie nation. But what took it so long?

“We have been discussing A&W Restaurants’ return to Singapore since 2011, when A&W Restaurants Inc took over ownership from Yum! Brands. Given the popularity of A&W Restaurants brand and its signature products, coupled with rising demand from local consumers, we knew we had to give the Singapore market another shot,” said Bazner, who went on to talk about how Singaporeans themselves had played a big part in the brand’s return.

President and CEO of A&W Restaurants, Inc. (Photo: A&W)

“A&W Restaurants receives daily requests via social media and other channels to bring the brand back to Singapore. To put this into perspective, hundreds of requests from potential franchisees are recorded each year,” he said.

As Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore reported on Tuesday (4 July), A&W has already set up its international corporate office in Singapore in 2016, and is currently looking for a space for its flagship outlet, which will serve as an international training ground for staff in the region.

“While we cannot confirm a specific area right now, we will make another announcement as soon as we can,” said Bazner, who also hinted that “key neighbourhood towns and regions as well as commercial malls and the Central Business District” are among some of the locations they are looking into. A&W’s first outlet in Singapore will be its flagship outlet owned by the company itself and not a franchise.

Craving for root beer floats and coney dogs? A&W confirms a return to Singapore in 2018 (Photo: A&W)

What else can Singaporeans expect from A&W’s return?

Bazner assured that Singaporeans can definitely look forward to the usual fan favourites, such as fried chicken, burgers, Coney Dogs, waffle ice cream, curly fries, and “freshly-made” root beer served in frosty mugs.

“But this is not just it… there will also be new innovation on the menu, which we will be ready to share closer to the first store opening,” he said.

While A&W has already made plans to launch in Singapore during the second half of 2018, “this will largely depend on the suitability of store sites and resources”, according to Bazner.

Source: Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore

July 7, 2017
Commentary: 38 Oxley Is Not The Address Of Singapore

38 Oxley is Not the Address of Singapore

After a noisy 2 days in Parliament the matter of Singapore’s Founding Prime Minister’s Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s home at 38 Oxley Road will now be settled through private channels among his three children. This is arguably how it should have been done all along. As the dust settles it is pertinent to make some observations on what this all means.

First, Singapore works. Our economy continued to hum, people got up and went to work and spent time with their families, the water still ran and the lights still came on. Our institutions and systems have held firm.

This is the most reassuring and reaffirming observation to make. In fact, it is the only one that really matters. If this had not held true nothing else would be material.

Second, ending the fiction of a ‘natural aristocracy’. Many of our leaders overinvest in the concept of meritocracy to conclude that we have a ‘natural aristocracy’ that deserves its rights and privileges because they are very intelligent.

Singapore has special people – they are Singaporeans, and not just Singaporean ‘leaders’. It is Singaporeans who define, embody and refresh the spirit that is Singapore.

Let us cease the practice of making demi-gods of political leaders. They are only human and in recognising them to be so we are paying them the respect they deserve for coping with life just as we all have to and yet rising (or trying to) above its travails to focus on the bigger picture and the longer term.

For their part political leaders should not forget that they serve at the pleasure of the people. Leaving aside the matter of the quality of the debate, there was no better affirmation of this than the debate in Parliament. It was a political display to retain the confidence of the people and a necessary one to underscore that we have a democratic system that must not just work but be seen to work.

Third, 38 Oxley Road is an address in Singapore. It is not the address of Singapore. It is time for Singaporeans and for politicians, current and aspiring, to grasp that Singapore is neither about land or Lee.

That is a very good thing. It shows that Singaporeans have matured, can keep perspective and know how to separate past from present and also know the difference between myth, however attractive, and practical matters.

While the personalities involved in this family fracas come out of this politically scarred, Singapore emerges from this stronger and better.

The Merlion may have been spitting in disgust recently but it is not drowning in despair. Its eyes look out at the horizon not at its navel or its tail. Our future lies out there and with it, dangers to deal with and opportunities to seize. Nothing has changed that and nothing will.

Source: Devadas Krishnadas

July 7, 2017
15-Year-Old Indonesian Teenager Weds 73-Year-Old Bride

A teenage boy has married his 73-year-old lover in a remote village on Indonesia’s Sumatra, officials said, after the unconventional couple threatened a double suicide if their match was thwarted.

The romance began when septuagenarian Rohaya Binti Kiagus Muhammad Jakfar took care of her neighbour Selamet Riyadi, 15, who was suffering from malaria, the local village chief said.

“Selamet is too young to marry but we married them anyway because he threatened to commit suicide,” village chief Cik Ani, told AFP, adding local officials also wanted them to “avoid the sin of adultery”.

“Since the boy is an underage, we have decided to carry out the marriage privately,” he said.

Riyadi’s father died several years ago and the boy was not properly cared for by his mother, who has remarried, Ani said.

Rohaya has been married twice before, both times to divorcees and has at least one child from the marriages, but this time “she got a virgin”, Ani added.

The marriage took place Sunday in the remote Karang Endah village in South Sumatra province, but sparked national interest when a video of the couple’s wedding vows went viral on social media outlets.

“He said he was madly in love. We love each other,” Rohaya told reporters after the wedding.

The video shows the unlikely couple reciting their vows in front of their relatives and friends.

Under Indonesian law, the legal age for marriage is 19 for a man and 16 for a woman.

Video: https://www.facebook.com/detikcom/videos/10155652343047079/

Source: AFP

July 7, 2017