Blog

“Shit Bombs” Keep Falling Out From The Sky In Jurong East

Remember that old phrase, “Money doesn’t fall from the sky”?

Apparently, shit does – at one HDB block in Jurong East.

Residents of Block 283 Toh Guan Rd report that for the past 2 months, “shit bombs” have been thrown from one of the units on a higher floor, up to 2 times a day!

These “shit bombs” have stained clothes, sullied windows, and left a disgusting stench during dinner time for some of the residents.

So far, no one has reported being hit by one of the “shit bombs”.

Besides the “shit bombs”, used tampons have also been found, and some residents believe the same culprit is tossing them.

Even with CCTV cameras installed, Jurong Town Council has so far been unable to identify the culprit.

The town council and the National Environmental Agency are investigating the matter.

Source: http://redwiretimes.com

September 22, 2015
Dominican Republic – Girls Become Boys After Reaching Puberty

For some adolescents living in the village of Salinas in the Dominican Republic, one pubescent change is the development of a penis and testes.

One in 90 boys residing in the area suffer from a rare condition that causes them to be born without male reproductive organs.

Known as Guevedoces — which means ‘penis at 12’ — these children spend the first decade or so of their lives as girls before turning into boys upon reaching puberty.

According to The Telegraph, Cornell endocrinologist Dr Julianne Imperato found an explanation to the phenomenon after making a trip to Salinas in the 1970s.

Dr Imperato’s study found that human embryos only have protrusions called tubercles and remain sexless for the first few weeks of life.

If the embryo is genetically male, the Y chromosome will instruct the gonads, or reproductive glands, to become testicles.

Hormone

Testosterone is then sent to the tubercle to be converted into a hormone known as dihydro-testosterone, which is responsible for transforming the tubercle into a penis.

In female embryos, dihydro-testosterone is absent and the tubercle transforms into a clitoris instead.

In its TV series Countdown To Life, BBC Two told the story of one of the Guevedoces — a 20-something man named Johnny who was once known as Felicita.

Johnny told BBC Two that he wasn’t comfortable spending the initial years of his life as a girl.

He said: “I never liked to dress as a girl and when they bought me toys for girls I never bothered playing with them – when I saw a group of boys I would stop to play ball with them.”

When Johnny made the transition from girl to boy, he struggled to fit in with the rest of the children.

He said: “They used to say I was a devil, nasty things, bad words and I had no choice but to fight them because they were crossing the line.”

After becoming a man, the next thing on Johnny’s mind is settling down with the right woman.

He said: “I’d like to get married and have children, a partner who will stand by me through good and bad.”

Source: www.tnp.sg

September 22, 2015
PCF To Increase Fares For Kindergartens, Childcare Centres

PAP Community Foundation (PCF), the largest pre-school operator here, is set to raise fees for most of its kindergarten and child care centres from next year.

Explaining that fee increases are needed from time to time to maintain the quality of its programmes, PCF could not say which or how many of its 153 childcare centres and 215 kindergartens will be affected, but explained that current fees and revised fees would “vary across different kindergartens, childcare and infant care centres”.

“Due to our large network of centres, it is also difficult to pinpoint a specified amount of increase due to the variation mentioned,” a spokesperson said. “The increase will affect generally all cohort of students.”

The hike was approved by the authorities in May. Several centres have already informed parents of the new fees, while the PCF will continue to reach out to parents over the rest of the month.

Stressing that PCF is committed to keeping fees affordable, the anchor operator also said fee increases are done in “tandem with increases in our investments in curriculum and learning environment as well as the employment of qualified teachers who continue to receive on-going profession development”.

“Such increases are also needed to defray rising operational costs, most notably in the salary costs of preschool staff,” the spokesperson added.

The PCF could not provide a range for how much fees would increase by, but a letter to parents from PCF Sparkletots Preschool @ Nanyang Blk 922 on revised fees — which was has been circulating online since last week — showed that from next year, K2 fees will be S$617.90 a month for Singapore citizens. Permanent residents (PRs) will pay S$765 and foreigners pay S$926.80.

For infant care, fees would be S$1235.80 a month for citizens, S$1,530.10 for PRs and S$1,853.70 for foreigners.

In September last year, it was reported that fees were raised for some PCF centres, but no organisation-wide hike was implemented.

The spokesperson, pointing out that the revised fees are below the fee cap set by the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA), also assured that even after the increase, the “vast majority” of PCF centres will continue to offer fees at lower than the median fees of other anchor operators and preschool centres. The fee cap for anchor operators is S$720 a month for full-day childcare.

PCF will help families who require financial assistance with relevant sources of support. For example, the PCF will continue to provide additional assistance through various local schemes including their Headstart Fund, which support families with monthly per capita income of S$500 or less.

Parents with children in PCF centres interviewed by TODAY said they have not been informed of any changes, but said they would be concerned if there are hikes, especially since some saw increases last year or the year before.

A parent with two children in PCF Punggol South, who did not want to be named, said fees at the centre were raised in January this year, and any increase next year would be unreasonable.

Private tutor Shawn Koh, 35, who has three children at PCF Lorong Ah Soo, said fees at the centre increase last year. and agreed that any increase must be justified.

Of the four pre-school anchor operators contacted by TODAY, two — MY World Preschool and E-Bridge — responded, saying they will not raise fees for next year.

Source: www.todayonline.com

September 22, 2015
Dr Norshahril Saat Dipilih Penerima Pertama Anugerah Sarjana Syed Isa Semait

MUIS memilih, Zamil ISEAS – Institut Yusof Ishak, Dr Norshahril Saat, sebagai penerima pertama bagi Anugerah Sarjana Syed Isa Semait atau SISS.

Anugerah itu mengiktiraf kepimpinan dan sumbangan besar mantan Mufti Singapura Syed Isa Semait terhadap kefahaman berbilang agama di negara ini.

Anugerah yang disertakan dengan wang bernilai $10,000 pula diberikan kepada calon paling layak antara para penerima Biasiswa Pos Siswazah MUIS PGS, sejak ia mula diperkenalkan pada tahun 2005.

Dr Norshahril Saat, pernah menerima biasiswa PGS pada tahun 2011.

Beliau berhasrat untuk mendalami cadangan dan pendapat mahasiswa-mahasiswa yang menuntut di Timur Tengah untuk kajiannya yang akan datang.

“Saya fikir ini satu pengiktirafan besar, di atas nama Syed Isa Semait. Saya fikir saya mahu belajar daripada pengalaman beliau yang menyumbang selama empat dekad dalam masyarakat Melayu/Islam Singapura,” jelas Dr Norshahril.

Pengiktirafan dan biasiswa itu diberikan kepada para penerima dalam satu majlis yang dihadiri Menteri Bertanggungjawab bagi Ehwal Masyarakat Islam, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim.

Menurut Dr Yaacob beliau amat menyokong inisiatif MUIS itu dalam memastikan masyarakat sentiasa ada para pakar dalam bidang-bidang tertentu.

“Mereka menjadi satu sumber yang penting bagi masyarakat kita oleh kerana kita menghadapi berbagai cabaran tertentu. Dengan sumber-sumber yang ada atau pakar-pakar yang kita telah melabur, saya harap mereka boleh menolong masyarakat kita menerajui dan mengatasi cabaran-cabaran yang kita akan hadapi dan sedang hadapi demi untuk kita mencari kesejahteraan bagi masyarakat kita,” ujar Dr Yaacob.

Penerima biasiswa PGS Muhammad Azfar Anwar, pernah menuntut di Universiti Darul Ulum di Kaherah.

Mantan pelajar Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah ini bakal melanjutkan pengajiannya ke peringkat ijazah sarjana di Universiti Oxford dalam jurusan Falsafah Pengajian Islam dan Sejarah.

“Saya lagi ingin mendalami lagi ilmu agama Islam dan saya ingin mendapat pelbagai perspektif dalam mempelajari ilmu Islam, bukan sahaja dari perspektif yang tradisional tetapi dari perspektif yang moden juga, yakni di Oxford,” kata Muhammad Azfar.

Muneerah Abdul Razak pula menerima geran kewangan bagi melanjutkan pengajiannya dalam bidang politik Timur Tengah di Universiti London.

Sejak tahun 2005, MUIS telah membelanjakan lebih $1 juta daripada wang zakat untuk para penerima biasiswa PGS, seramai 24 orang.

Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg

September 22, 2015
Massive 8 Vehicle Pile-Up At AYE Caused By Vehicle Moving Against Traffic

A massive 8 vehicle pile up early this morning caused a massive jam from Buona Vista to Yuan Ching along the Ayer Rajah Expressway this morning. The cause – a driver of a red Honda vehicle had been driving against traffic flow on the first lane of the expressway before he collided head on with a blue Comfort Delgro taxi

The impact of the crash left the front ends of the Honda and the taxi badly smashed, with the wheels of the taxi flung out by the impact. The rear end of the red Honda was also flattened from the impact with other vehicles, who could not veer in time to avoid the crash.

In total, 4 taxis, 2 cars, 1 lorry and 1 motorcyclist were involved in the accident.

Police confirmed that they received a call early this morning and dispatched emergency vehicles to assist. The 60 year-old Chinese man who drove the red Honda, along with 2 other casualties were conveyed conscious to the National University of Singapore Hospital.

Family members of the red Honda driver were shocked when told of what caused the accident. According to family members, the 60 year-old driver had left his home in Jurong at about 8AM in the morning and did not seem out of sorts. They did not believe that he had driven against traffic along the AYE as expressway speeds are high and very dangerous.

Police are investigating the case.

Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

September 22, 2015