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Fined $72,000 For Hiring Foreign Stall Assistants Without Valid Work Passes At Geylang, Tampines And Toa Payoh Bazaars

A 40-year-old Singaporean man has been fined S$72,000 for hiring Indonesians without valid work passes as stall assistants at three pasar malams (night markets) last year. Between Jun 1 to Sep 16 last year, Sao Wei Loon employed the 19 social visit pass holders to work as assistants at food and beverage stalls in bazaars at Geylang Serai, Tampines and Toa Payoh, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said in a press release on Wednesday (Jun 28).

The illegal employment lasted from three days to more than three weeks. The MOM’s director of employment inspectorate at the foreign manpower management division, Mr Kandhavel Periyasamy, called this a “particularly egregious” case of illegal employment as Sao had illegally employed a large number of foreigners on social visit passes. Sao was convicted of eight of the 19 charges after pleading guilty on Tuesday. He will serve the default sentence of six months’ imprisonment in lieu of the fine.

In the last two years, 109 employers were convicted for illegal employment offences according to the MOM. Those who hire foreigners without valid work passes can be fined up to S$30,000 and jailed up to 12 months. They will also be banned from employing foreign workers, the MOM said.

Source: Channel News Asia

June 28, 2017
Berdakwah Melalui Populariti

Kian ramai ustaz atau ustazah muda yang semakin popular dengan jumlah pengikut yang ramai serta “perkongsian” atau jumlah “share” yang memberangsangkan. Mereka menjadi popular kerana berkongsi pengalaman yang berkaitan dengan kehidupan atau agama ataupun fesyen. Misalnya, imam bebas, Ustaz Muhammad Tamliikhaa Khamsani, 26 tahun, sering mendapat lebih 200 “likes” di akaun Facebooknya bagi hampir setiap catatan yang beliau muat turun. Antaranya termasuk catatan terkininya berjudul Cerita-Cerita Masjid Singapura yang menyenaraikan luahannya sebagai imam di beberapa masjid sempena Ramadan ini.

Namun di sebalik catatannya, Ustaz Tamliikhaa, yang sedang melanjutkan pelajaran di peringkat Sarjana dalam Pengajian Bahasa Melayu di Universiti Nasional Singapura (NUS), berharap perkongsian yang ringkas dan mesra masyarakat itu dapat memupuk nilai pemikiran bersifat kritikal dan sifat bertimbang rasa dalam masyarakat Islam di Singapura. Seorang lagi yang popular dan dikenali kerana fesyennya yang cukup menyerlah ialah Ustazah Liyana Musfirah Anwar, 24 tahun.

Malah beliau boleh dianggap sebagai ikon fesyen dalam kalangan asatizah setempat dengan pengikutnya memuji pakaian dan tudung yang digayakannya. Namun inilah cara Ustazah Liyana, Ketua Pembangunan Perniagaan di Safinah Institute, mendekati pengikutnya dengan turut mengetengahkan kata-kata motivasi yang bersifat kerohanian. “Cara terbaik menyampaikan dakwah ialah dengan memahami kehendak dan keperluan masyarakat. Asatizah perlu tahu apakah pendekatan terbaik untuk mendekati pengikut mereka dan bagi saya secara peribadi ialah melalui fesyen. Memang secara alami wanita gemar kelihatan cantik, justeru secara tidak langsung saya menggunakan peluang ini untuk menggabungkan cinta kepada fesyen dengan cinta saya kepada Islam buat para pengikut saya,” ujar Ustazah Liyana.

Source: Berita Harian

June 28, 2017
Monthly Visits To Cat Hoarder/Breeder

Residents’ Committee members will pay monthly visits to a woman who kept 94 cats in a two-room flat at block 470B Fervale Link to “check on the situation, as well as her condition,” MP for the area Lam Pin Min said on Tuesday (Jun 27). Dr Lam, who said he learnt of the issue last week, added that grassroots organisations are helping the woman to clean up the flat. It is understood the woman in question lives in the flat with her mother. “We have referred her to the Family Service Centre and Social Service Office for further counselling and assistance,” the MP added.

The said unit reeks of a strong smell of urine and faeces hung in the air and two women were seen disposing of soiled furniture and other items at the void deck. Neighbours said an elderly woman and her daughter lived in the flat with the 94 cats. The two women moved in at the beginning of this year, although neighbours barely saw them, they said, adding that they were not aware that there were so many cats in the flat as well. One neighbour, who declined to be named, said: “The house has always been very smelly. I have never seen the cats come out, but the smell was still unbearable.” So bad it was that they could smell the stench from within their rooms, even when their doors were closed. “The few times we encountered the smell from the house, we suspected it was maybe the smell of a dead cat or that the elderly lady had passed away also,” another neighbour said.

Two neighbours first complained about the cat issue to the Housing and Development Board in May this year. HDB officers paid a visit to the woman and informed her that cats are not allowed in HDB flats, and that she would have to find new homes for them.

June 28, 2017
Insaf Menyambut Aidilfitri Dalam Penjara Selama 15 Tahun

Selama 15 tahun, suasana Aidilfitri dalam penjara membuka mata dan menyentak perasaan Encik Abdul*. Kerinduan yang membuak-buak kepada keluarga dan semangat persaudaraan yang hilang antara sesama Muslim di sana membulatkan tekad beliau untuk berubah. Setiap kali selepas bersolat dan bertakbir beramai-ramai pada pagi Hari Raya, Encik Abdul, 46 tahun berasa kecewa dengan sikap para banduan Muslim. Encik Abdul, ialah seorang bekas banduan yang dipenjarakan atas kesalahan dadah. Beliau, yang sebelum ini keluar masuk penjara sebanyak enam kali berkata kebanyakan daripada banduan merindui keluarga mereka setiap kali Syawal tiba.

Kali terakhir beliau ditangkap pada tahun 2010, menurut Encik Abdul, benar-benar menjadi titik tolak perubahan dalam dirinya. Berdepan dengan kemungkinan dijatuhi hukuman gantung pada ketika itu, Encik Abdul mula menyerah diri beliau sepenuhnya kepada Allah SWT. Sejak itu, Encik Abdul mula merenung kembali masa silam beliau dan menyedari bahawa dadah yang dijual sebelum ini bukan setakat menjejas kehidupan beliau sendiri, malah juga merosakkan hidup orang lain. Encik Abdul dibebaskan pada bulan Januari 2015 dan kini sudah bebas dadah selama dua tahun.

Sejak bebas dadah dan setelah dirujuk kepada Pertubuhan Perusahaan Pemulihan Singapura (SCORE), Encik Abdul mendapat pekerjaan dalam bidang logistik di IKEA dan masih lagi bekerja sehingga sekarang. Memberikan nasihat beliau kepada golongan lebih muda, Encik Abdul menegaskan bahawa dadah bukanlah alternatif untuk menyelesaikan masalah. Malahan ia hanya akan mendatangkan masalah yang lebih besar. Beliau menambah, minda mestilah sentiasa berfikiran positif. “Kuasa pemikiran amat penting. Orang lain tak boleh ubah diri kita. Bila kita ambil dadah, sel-sel otak banyak yang mati. Keupayaan kita untuk berfikir tak kuat. Namun sebenarnya kita masih boleh berfikiran positif, hari-hari perlu fikir positif.”

(*Nama individu yang diwawancara BERITAMediacorp digantikan demi melindungi identiti sebenar mereka.)

Source: Berita Mediacorp

June 28, 2017
[Follow Up On Hanim Store, Johor Bahru]

A few Singaporean Malay families have been very frustrated with this tailor called Hanim Store in Johor Bahru because the said shop did not deliver the Hari Raya clothes as promised. The video, showing a Singaporean man and a few other customers of the shop at the shop premises on Saturday evening, the eve of Hari Raya, being very angry and disappointed at the shop’s empty promises.

Apparently, the shop has a history of not delivering their promise and this goes back to 2012 where one customer lamented that she was cheated by the shop (screenshot in Malay). So please do some research before you patronize or take up any services from any shops!

Rilek1Corner

June 27, 2017