Blog

Local Boys Rap To Remind Singaporeans To Stop Abusing Ofo Bikes

By now, it is unusual if we do not hear or read about another ofo bike being abused by Singaporeans who cannot seem to fathom the concept of sharing.

Stomp has compiled countless reports of ofo bikes being damaged, dismantled, painted and kept by users in their own homes.

Ofo is one of three companies offering bicycle sharing services for the public here.

Netizens have slammed the selfish behaviour of these users who are not working to make the concept work with others.

Now, a group of boys have come up with a catchy rap about the ofo bike.

Stomper Fauzi alerted us to the video posted on Twitter.

Although they obviously came up with the fun ditty for laughs, the rap has some good points.

Titled, “Mencari ofo” or Looking for ofo, it starts off with how the boy rapping rides the ofo to school.

He says that the yellow hue of the bike is easy to spot but unfortunately, people like to throw it.

He gets a headache from trying to find an ofo bike because they are being kept at staircase landings and even inside homes instead of at accessible public areas.

He then ends by rapping how he searches for the elusive ofo bikes until the break of dawn.

The rap has garnered over 2,100 retweets and 1,100 likes so far.

Source: www.stomp.com.sg

May 23, 2017
SportsHub CEO Placed On Extended Leave After Alleged Anonymous Complains About Management Style

SportsHub CEO Manu Sawhney has been placed on extended leave after an anonymous complaint by a staff about his management style.

Manu Sawhney – who hailed from India before taking up S’pore citizenship – was appointed to the position in 2015.

In the 1 over years after he took office, there was a flurry of senior level resignations amidst talk of low employee morale and lack of communication across the organisation.

SportsHub declined to comment further on the complaint saying that staff matters are confidential.

Source: The Alternative View

May 23, 2017
World’s Largest Muslim Youth Wing Calls For Re-Examination Of Islamic Text

JOMBANG, East Java, Indonesia: The world’s largest Muslim youth organisation Gerakan Pemuda Ansor (GP Ansor) – the youth wing of Indonesia’s largest Muslim organisation Nadlatul Ulama (NU) – on Monday (May 22) called for a re-examination of Islamic text to adapt it to modern civilisation.

The call is a bold move from NU and comes three weeks after the jailing of Jakarta’s first ethnic Chinese Christian governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, also known as Ahok. His conviction has raised concerns that extremists are gaining an upper hand in a country long known as the face of moderate Islam.

NU claims to have 50 million followers. Its youth wing GP Ansor warned that failure to re-examine the text will see continued bloodshed in Muslim countries, which could “threaten humanity”.

“A wide discrepancy now exists between the structure of Islamic orthodoxy and the context of Muslims’ actual reality,” said Luthfi Thomafi, a member of GP Ansor’s board. “(This is) due to immense changes that have occurred since the teachings of orthodox Islam, which became largely ossified towards the end of the medieval era.”

“Civil discord, acts of terrorism, rebellion and outright warfare – all pursued in the name of Islam – will continue to plague Muslims and threaten humanity at large, until these issues are openly acknowledged and resolved,” Thomafi added.

Among the complex issues that lie at the heart of this discrepancy are practices governing relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, according to GP Ansor. These include the rights, responsibilities and role of non-Muslims who live in Muslim-majority societies and vice versa.

The group on Monday issued a GP Ansor Declaration on Humanitarian Islam which provides a strategic road map for a coordinated, long-term effort to address issues in the Islamic world.

Key elements in the strategy include:

– New theological discourse (ijtihad) to recontextualise Islamic teachings for the modern era;

– Development and adoption of new educational curriculum throughout the Islamic world; and

– Grassroots movement(s) to build societal consensus and political will.

“Our goal is to develop an international network leading to the emergence of a global movement which shall be dedicated to the well-being of humanity as a whole – and to the fostering of a truly global civilisation – inspired by ‘humanitarian Islam’, likened to Islam rahmatan li al-‘alamin, which serves as a blessing for all creation,” said Thomafi.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

May 23, 2017
M Ravi Files Constitutional Challenge Against Changes To Elected Presidency

Human rights lawyer M. Ravi yesterday filed a constitutional challenge against changes to the elected presidency made last year.

The changes, which Parliament approved last November, tighten the qualifying criteria for candidates, and include a provision to reserve a presidential election for candidates from a racial group that has not been represented in the office for five continuous terms.

Mr Ravi argues that the changes are unconstitutional because they deprive citizens of their right to stand for public office and discriminate on the grounds of ethnicity.

The High Court confirmed that Mr Ravi had filed an originating summons and supporting affidavit.

A spokesman for the Attorney-General’s Chambers told The Straits Times that “it will study the papers” filed by Mr Ravi.

Mr Ravi, currently a non-practising lawyer, said on Facebook that he filed the application in his capacity as a private citizen.

His is the second legal challenge related to the elected presidency mounted this month.

On May 5, former presidential candidate Tan Cheng Bock filed a challenge over whether the upcoming presidential election should be a reserved one.

Unlike Dr Tan, Mr Ravi challenges the entire reserved election mechanism as unconstitutional, he said on Facebook yesterday.

He believes that the elected presidency is not consistent with Article 12(2) of the Constitution.

It states that unless expressly authorised by the Constitution, there shall be no discrimination against Singapore citizens on the ground only of religion, race, descent or place of birth in any law, or in the appointment to any office, or employment under a public authority.

“The right to stand for the elected presidency should be no different from the right to participate in parliamentary elections – all citizens should be equal,” he wrote.

“The selection of the elected candidate should be based on merit, all other relevant requirements being fulfilled.”

Mr Ravi also contends the amendments run counter to a legal principle called the basic structure doctrine, which he says applies here.

Source: www.tnp.sg

May 23, 2017
Robin Costume Among Those Confiscated During Raid Of Gay Party In Jakarta

JAKARTA • Indonesian police have detained 141 men who were allegedly holding a gay party at a sauna, an official said yesterday, the latest sign of a backlash against homosexuals in the Muslim-majority country.

Officers had on Sunday night raided a building in the capital Jakarta, called Atlantis, that houses a sauna and a gym, and halted an event they said was called “The Wild One”.

“Our officers did an undercover investigation and raided the place on Sunday,” said senior detective Nasriadi, who goes by one name.

Homosexuality and gay sex are legal everywhere in Indonesia except in conservative Aceh province, but Mr Nasriadi said that 10 of those arrested in the Jakarta raid could be charged under Indonesia’s tough anti-pornography laws.

The 10 men include the alleged organisers of the event as well as those suspected of being prostitutes and striptease dancers. Those found guilty of breaking the laws face up to 10 years in jail.

The others detained are still being questioned by police as potential witnesses in the case, the detective said.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

May 23, 2017