The police are appealing for information on the whereabouts of 34-year-old Muhammad Azmi Bin Kamarudin.
He was last seen along Hougang Avenue 6 on Aug 11 at around 9pm.
Anyone with information is requested to call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
All information will be kept strictly confidential.
Having been a People’s Action Party (PAP) MP for 16 years, Madam Halimah Yacob is aware that there are Singaporeans who question her ability to be non-partisan if she is elected president.
“I know people have that concern because of my past affiliation with the PAP,” she told The Straits Times in an interview. “But I just want to say that the president has a duty first and foremost to Singapore and Singaporeans, and not to any party.”
She also has the track record to prove her independence, noting that whether as a unionist or parliamentarian, she had not always toed the government line.
An occasion she remembered clearly was when she abstained from voting on amendments to the Human Organ Transplant Act in Parliament in 2007.
Changes tabled by then Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan would allow organ recipients to reimburse donors’ expenses if they wished.
She was concerned that this would lead to poor people being persuaded to “sell” their organs.
The party whip was lifted, and she abstained, sending a strong signal of her misgivings.
She recalled: “I decided not to say yes. I didn’t ask the Health Minister how he felt, but I can still remember the expression on his face.”
Source: www.tnp.sg
Tucked away in a quiet corner of Yishun is an unassuming public housing flat that could possibly enter Singapore political history.
The Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat, built in 1987, is home to Madam Halimah Yacob.
She told reporters she was very comfortable in her HDB home and hopes to continue living there with her family, as they have done for over two decades, even if she is elected to the top office in the land.
Traditionally, the Istana serves as the official presidential residence and office. “I don’t see why I can’t continue (living in a HDB flat) unless there are other considerations like security, for instance, because I know it can be quite a nightmare to ensure security in public housing,” the 62-year-old presidential hopeful told reporters on Sunday night. “Other than that, I see no reason why I cannot continue.”
A number of her neighbours and shopkeepers in her neighbourhood agree. “This is public housing. She’s a public servant. There’s nothing unsuitable about her staying here,” said shopkeeper Lee Swee Seng, 53, whose 17-year-old provision shop is frequented by Mdm Halimah’s family members for household items such as bread or detergent.
Madam Susan Ho, 63, who lives two doors down from Mdm Halimah’s family, agrees.
“If she wins, I would be excited because my neighbour in this HDB block would be the President,” said Mdm Ho, who stays with her daughter and son-in-law on weekdays, helping to care for her grandson.
“She’s very humble to stay in such a house. Most presidents would stay in the official residence,” Mdm Ho added.
Not everyone, however, is convinced that it would be practical for a President to live in a HDB flat.
“For security reasons, I don’t think she can continue staying here if she becomes President,” said a 46-year-old taxi driver who lives one floor above Mdm Halimah.
He declined to give his name, adding that he felt it would be more appropriate for her to live in a private house.
Mdm Halimah and her family currently live in two adjacent HDB units in Yishun that they bought on the resale market.
The presidential candidate is most often seen waiting for her chauffeur at the void deck in the morning.
At other times, she can be seen lugging groceries home from Mr Lee’s provision shop or the neighbourhood supermarket.
“During Hari Raya this year, she came over personally to share pastries such as pineapple tarts and cookies,” said Madam Chris Toh, 50, Mdm Halimah’s next-door neighbour. “When we see her, we just treat her as a neighbour. She’s truly a person with no airs … (if she wins), I won’t think of her as President,” added Mdm Toh.
Mr Lee, the shopkeeper, said he has seen Mdm Halimah’s five children grow up over the years. “They’re very well-mannered and will always ask after us while buying things at our shop,” he added.
For now, the buzz of presidential politics has yet to descend on this sleepy neighbourhood, where familiar daily routines and habits continue uninterrupted.
Mdm Toh said: “I’ll see (Mdm Halimah) climbing the stairs as I take the lift up. So I asked her, ‘Mdm, are you exercising?’ And she said, ‘Yes, must exercise’.”
Source: www.todayonline.com
The online sphere is especially interested in establishment favourite Halimah, who finally announced her intention to take part in the race after months of speculation, last Sunday.
Questions on Halimah’s ‘malayness’ and whether she can really participate in an election that has been expressly set aside for Malay candidates, given that her father is Indian, have gained much traction.
Opinions that her resignation as a minority MP goes against the basis of the GRC system have also been volleyed by several prominent parties. Former PAP MP Inderjit Singh said that a sitting MP resigning from office to contest the presidential race may go against the spirit of the Office as intended by Lee Kuan Yew, while ex-Association of Malay Professionals director Nizam Ismail asserted that Halimah’s resignation will dilute minority representation in Marsiling Yew-Tee GRC and in Parliament.
Meanwhile, opposition political party Singapore Democratic Party has taken issue with the Government’s decision to not call for a by-election to fill Halimah’s roles. Calling the decision “an abuse of the system” and one that “makes a mockery of the general elections,” the party said that it is exploring legal remedies to compel the Government to call for a by-election.
In the midst of all this, former senior political correspondent from the Straits Times, Ismail Kassim, has put forth another question about Halimah’s candidacy: if Halimah becomes president, will a photo of her wearing the hijab hang in all public sector offices?
This question is particularly notable since Malay-Muslim women in public service frontline roles, like police officers and nurses, are still not freely allowed to wear hijabs at work in Singapore.
What do you think? Will Malay-Muslim women in frontline public service roles still be barred from wearing the hijab if the head of state is a hijab-wearing woman? Or will such women be finally free to wear hijabs if Halimah is elected?
Source: www.theindependent.sg
It’s the eve of National Day and perhaps it’s timely that I’ve been thinking about the Presidential Elections (which I was supposed to be on duty for until I decided to leave the service). This whole PE debacle seems to sum up the story of my life. “Pakistanis” and “Indians”, running for a spot reserved for a “Malay” President.
My dad is of Pakistani descent (even though he registered himself as Indian in his IC), and my grandparents were born in Ipoh, Malaya. My dad himself, was born in Singapore and grew up in Geylang Serai, the heart of the Malay kampong. His family speaks English and Malay, though our primary language is English.
My mum is of Indian heritage. Her father left India as an orphaned young man, and came to Singapore looking for work. She grew up in Macpherson, speaking English and Tamil.
My parents are both Muslim, born into Muslim families.
Growing up, half Indian half Pakistani, Muslim and learning Malay in school, you slowly learn that conformity is lauded. Your wavy hair curls in all the wrong directions, it is too frizzy, your skin colour too “black” for your friends (and more-than-friends). You don’t fit in with the Indians because you don’t speak Tamil, and while you eat at the Malay stall, you don’t fit in with the Malays cos .. you know .. you’re not Malay.
I struggled with this my whole life. Where’s the line that makes you Indian enough? Where’s the line that makes you Malay enough?
People comment that I shouldn’t forget my Pakistani culture – I should learn Urdu. My parents don’t even speak it. Being Pakistani meant Bollywood movies (SRK Kajol love), chappatis (on a rare occasion – more so when dadi was still around), and that one trip back to the village when I was in primary school. Does that make me Pakistani enough?
People comment that it’s a shame I don’t speak my mother tongue “Tamil”. Just because my mum speaks it. I spent six months working in an NGO in India. We eat chicken curry, muruku and I wore a saree once (for my cousins wedding). Does that make me Indian enough?
People comment that my Malay is too proper, it sounds unnatural. I didn’t grow up speaking Malay, yes, my tuition teacher made me speak in bahasa baku. Yes, I got a distinction for my Malay oral for ‘O’ levels. Yes, my Malay grades were better than my English grades. Yes, I like pantuns of empat kerats and peribahasas but I also love rock kapak. Yes, I grew up reading Pak Pandir and Gila-Gila. Yes, we eat masak merah, sambal goreng and rendang at home. Nasi lemak is my favourite local dish. Does that make me Malay enough?
I am all and yet I am none.
Our whole life, we recite, regardless of race, language or religion. And yet time and again, they try to box us in.
Why do we look at how well a person fits into a box? Why not see how good of a person he/she is? How good of a human being?
A righteous leader will stand up for his/her people – his/her people being EVERYONE in their nation. Not just people of the same colour, language or religion. We don’t need a figurehead to be inclusive, we don’t need to seem inclusive, we need to BE inclusive. We need to make sure that ALL our children have sufficient opportunities to rise and chase their dreams, no matter their background.
And yes, we teach them our culture and our languages, but we also teach them the beauty of others. We teach them to be kind and to be open, we teach them to care. We teach them to strive, alone and together.
I’m tired of being boxed in. I contain within me multitudes. I am what I am what I am.
Source: Aneesa Fazal