Tag: Singapura

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
Suspicious Man Loitering Around Void Deck In Sengkang, Parents With Kids To Be Wary

Salam everyone.. Just wanted to share something that happened to me this morning (5 July) at Fernvale, Sengkang West Way.

After sending my 2nd daughter off through her school van, me and my youngest daughter proceeded to take the lift back home.

Out of nowhere, a guy who looks like a chinese national, hop on the same lift as me looking rather suspicious.

This was the same guy who was lurking around the void deck when I was waiting to fetch my daughter from her school van yesterday. Moreover, he was wearing the exact same shirt as the day before.

He pressed the 13th floor but throughout the journey up, he kept glancing towards my youngest daughter.

I felt uneasy and alighted from the lift. Surprisingly, the lift stopped just a storey above me. I quickly went back home to inform my husband who was fortunately on off today about the incident in the lift.

While discussing, I just had the intuition to peep through the peephole and to my horror, that same guy was lurking just outside my house!

I hid away but Hubby decided to confront the guy to ask for his intention for standing in front of our house. He claimed to be ‘working’ and is here everyday but Hubby called his bluff asking where is his town council shirt then and if he’s not with the town council, do provide his supervisor’s contact details. When he could not answer all those queries, Hubby threatened to call the police. The guy immediately said sorry and ran down the stairs.

That whole incident send goosebumps all over my body.

Hubby did call the police to inform them about the matter. The guy was about 170cm-ish aged probably in the late 30s/ early 40s wearing a grey nike shirt and cream coloured shorts. The only mistake was hubby forgot to snap a photo of the guy as he was charging his phone.

The police mentioned that they will step up the patrolling and would only go through footages from cctv cameras at the staircase landing should the guy appear again.

Sharing this here so that we can all be extra vigilant when we’re bringing our kids outside.

Source: Nur Haryani Husni

July 7, 2017
Man Stereotyped By Agent As Being Dubious, Even Willing To Call Police On Him

What happened afew hrs ago..
I did and said what I did, coz I was just too pissed off.
I was stereotyped to a point where, I actually felt like I might as well had been a criminal..

And so the story goes..
Went to meet a property agent today at an old residential bungalow off East Coast Road. This landed home would be a 2min drive from my own home, which is perfect.
Rental was cheap (coz market is shite) and before I met him at this unit, I clearly told him what I was gonna use it for..

1) Storage purposes of old furnitures, music equipments, old flooring materials,..etc, things that are too valuable to discard.

2) I might sublet 1 or 2 bedrooms out to offset the rental abit, since I wont be using it as a running office and its mostly for storage, I figured that, the more practical thing to do for a house like this is to rent out one or 2 bedrooms. It is a landed house anyways, with large bedrooms. See I have many expat friends in Singapore who are already paying ridiculous prices in cramped HDB bedrooms.

Agent immediately, upon reading my sms, replied, ”Hi Mr Bhai, owners will NOT have a problem with that. Are you free to meet me at the unit at 3.30pm?”
I said yes. The landed house, being only 2 minits away from my home.. put on my t-shirt and shorts, bundled my hair and proceeded to meet him.

As I was nearing the house in question, I noticed the agent alighting from an Uber/Grab car. He was probably in his 50s, close to 60, in a short sleeved shirt and jeans. He opened the gate to the car porch and I drove my car into the home. He turned for abit while unlocking the grilles to the main door and signalled a hello to me.

I switched off my engine, got out of the car, locked it and started walking towards this agent. I noticed that the smile he had on, had faded and the welcoming gesture he gave to me whilst I was still in my car had now turned into a a nonchalant thing.

I walked up to him and said ”Hello”..

Here was his reply after seeing a non shaved ‘Hooligan’ in shorts, slippers with a man-bun, that just came out of a Batmobile…

Agent :
You are Mr Bhai ah? You are NOT Chinese?
What exactly you wanna store in the house ah??

Before I cud even reply..
(remember that I had already explained to him prior to meeting)

Agent :
If you do any illegal business or store anything illegal ah, me as the agent and the owners have no problems calling the police on you!..

My jaw literally dropped to the floor.. I had barely taken off my slippers and took one step into the house when he said this to me.. 2 seconds later, I picked up my jaw from the old terrazzo flooring of this pre-war detached house, put my face 3 inches from his, and said in a soft but solid tone..

Me :
FUCK YOU, u piece of shit..
You are very lucky that you are an old man..

…. and I walked back to my car and drove away, 2 minits back to my home. I wonder how long it would take him to call a driver, wait for the driver, take the ride and reach back home, and how much that wud cost him. I didnt care..

#BhaiAngullia
#RacialStereotyping
#imarockernotadrugdealer
#rockneverdiesbutyoursalestechniquedid

Source: Bhai Hafiz Angullia

July 6, 2017
Madrasah Wak Tanjong Student Becomes 2-Time Valedictorian

Valedictorian Nisha Mohd Rafiq, who will graduate with a PhD in Biological Sciences from NUS and King’s College London on 9 July, has been interested in science since she was young.

At fourteen years of age, the avid reader established a Science Club in her secondary school — Madrasah Wak Tanjong — so that she could gather like-minded individuals for discussions about science. Generous with her time and knowledge, Nisha conducted extra lessons and practical sessions in the laboratory for her peers in Secondary Four. Upon completion of her O Levels, Nisha studied biomedical science at Temasek Polytechnic and as part of her course, served as an intern with a research institute. The experience inculcated in her a deep passion for scientific research, so much so that as an undergraduate, the NUS Life Sciences major would seek every opportunity to work in the laboratories during school vacations.

Nisha is the inaugural PhD student for the four-year PhD programme jointly offered by NUS and King’s College London under the NUS Research Scholarship. As part of her graduate degree, Nisha conducted research on the mechanical signalling in podosomes. Podosomes, which are found in cells such as immune cells, break through barriers, allowing cells to move to a new location. The study of podosomes appealed to Nisha as cancer cells also had structures similar to podosomes, and she hoped that the study of the latter would provide some insight into the migration of cancer cells.

Speaking of what drives her, Nisha said, “In science research, more than 90 per cent of your experiments are likely to fail, but there is always this excitement and promise about uncovering something new or totally unexpected. And this really motivates me to pursue science.”

For her PhD degree, Nisha carried out research on mechanical signalling in podosomes

In June 2016, Nisha served as the co-chair of the Gordon Research Seminar meeting on “Signalling by Adhesion Receptors”. These two-day meetings, which take place before the Gordon Research Conference, provide post-doctoral fellows and students with the opportunity to meet with established professors in their respective fields. The week-long Conferences are intensive affairs, with sessions starting at 7.30am and ending around 11.00pm daily. Earlier this year, Nisha gave two talks on fibronectin, integrins and related molecules at a Gordon Research Conference held in California, US.

“In science research, more than 90 per cent of your experiments are likely to fail, but there is always this excitement and promise about uncovering something new or totally unexpected. And this really motivates me to pursue science.” — Nisha Mohd Rafiq

During her PhD candidature, Nisha also co-authored four research papers in peer-reviewed international journals, including Nature Communications and The Journal of Cell Biology. In spite of her busy schedule, Nisha makes time for the Women in Science Initiative at Mechanobiology Institute, Singapore (MBI) where she is currently a Research Associate. The Initiative seeks to encourage more girls to pursue science through interactive platforms such as talks and visits.

The two-time valedictorian — the first time being upon completion of her undergraduate degree — had this to share with aspiring researchers, “They should know that they will keep failing.” Nisha opines that success is achieved when a researcher, with minimal supervision, is able to shed light in a particular field.

Upon graduation, Nisha will continue working at MBI till the end of the year, after which she will seek a post-doctoral fellowship position in either Europe or the US. Her heart remains rooted to Singapore though, and she sees herself returning in the future to work on issues that the country faces, such as an ageing population.

Source: NUS

July 6, 2017